Overview
- President Donald Trump told reporters he has "in a way" decided his next steps on Venezuela but declined to reveal the choice.
- The USS Gerald R. Ford, the U.S. Navy’s largest aircraft carrier, is operating in the Caribbean as part of an expanded counter-narcotics mission.
- Washington plans joint military exercises with Trinidad and Tobago, according to the island nation’s foreign ministry.
- CBS News and the Washington Post reported that senior defense and administration officials briefed Trump on a range of options, including potential ground operations.
- U.S. forces have sunk multiple suspected drug boats with reported fatalities under the anti-narcotics effort, while Caracas has boosted military readiness and opposition leader María Corina Machado urged regime officials to defect when a decisive moment arrives.