Washington [US], October 24: US President Donald Trump said he would soon launch ground attacks on drug traffickers in foreign territories, but said there was no need to declare war to do so.
President Trump told reporters at the White House on October 23 that the administration plans to brief Congress on the ongoing anti-drug campaign near Venezuela , according to Reuters. The US military has deployed thousands of troops along with submarines, warships and F-35 stealth aircraft to the Caribbean in recent weeks.
"I don't think we're going to have to ask for a declaration of war. I think we're just going to kill the people that are bringing the drugs into our country. Okay? We're going to kill them," Mr. Trump said.
The US military has carried out numerous airstrikes against suspected drug vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific since early September, killing nearly 40 people. Several of those incidents occurred near Venezuela .
"Now [the drug cartels] are coming in by land. The mainland is next. We can go to the Senate, we can go to Congress and talk to them about it, but I can't imagine they can have any trouble with it," Mr. Trump said.
Some analysts speculate that the US administration's anti-drug campaign is actually a pretext for putting pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Earlier, Mr. Trump said he had authorized the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to conduct covert operations in Venezuela. Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino said that Caracas knew of the CIA's presence and declared that any action by the agency would fail, according to AFP.
At an event in Caracas on the same day, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro warned that if the US intervenes in Venezuela, "the working class will rise up and a general strike will be declared in the streets until power is regained." The leader said that "millions of men and women with rifles will march throughout the country." Mr. Maduro also called for peace and not to wage "crazy wars."
Also on October 23, flight data tracking website Flightradar24 showed that at least one US B-1B bomber flew in the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Venezuela before turning around and disappearing.
Mr. Trump denied this information but said that the US is not happy with Venezuela for many reasons. On October 15, the US Air Force announced that B-52H bombers conducted an attack exercise in the area.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
