Overview
- U.S. officials have presented the president with options from expanded maritime strikes to raids on Venezuelan targets, with media reports noting that no final order has been announced.
- The USS Gerald R. Ford and more than a dozen warships, supported by F-35s based in Puerto Rico, are concentrated near Venezuela, with two vessels reported roughly 50 kilometers from Caracas.
- Since August, U.S. forces have conducted more than 20 attacks on small boats in the Caribbean, resulting in about 75 to 80 reported deaths.
- Nicolás Maduro has ordered force-wide mobilization and called for permanent street actions in six eastern states while urging followers to avoid provocations.
- Russia has publicly condemned prospective U.S. intervention and pledged support to Caracas, while reports say Washington is considering post‑Maduro scenarios including exile or prosecution.