Overview
- Washington’s listing took effect on November 24 and explicitly ties the network’s leadership to Nicolás Maduro and senior Venezuelan officials.
- Caracas formally rejected the move as a “ridiculous hoax,” calling the cartel “nonexistent” and accusing the U.S. of seeking a pretext for illegitimate intervention.
- The FAA urged extra caution for flights over Venezuela, prompting suspensions by Iberia, TAP, Latam, Avianca, Gol, Caribbean and Air Europa, with Turkish announcing temporary cancellations and Venezuelan carriers adjusting schedules.
- U.S. forces maintain a large Caribbean deployment that includes the USS Gerald R. Ford, with operations since September against suspected smuggling boats that news tallies say left roughly 80–83 people dead, a record Venezuela condemns as extrajudicial.
- Independent researchers describe the cartel as diffuse networks inside state institutions rather than a single hierarchy, even as U.S. officials say the terror label equips broader tools; a senior U.S. military chief is set to visit Trinidad and Tobago for security talks.