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3d ago

U.S. Expands Naval Buildup Off Venezuela With Cruiser and Submarine En Route

The Pentagon frames the mission as counternarcotics enforcement under existing indictments.

A man looks at a banner offering a reward for information leading to the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and Venezuela's Minister of Interior Relations, Justice, and Peace, Diosdado Cabello, in Villa del Rosario, Norte de Santander Department, Colombia, on August 23, 2025.
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As tensions soar, Venezuela mobilizes 4.5 million militia members following U.S. naval deployment under Donald Trump’s leadership.

Overview

  • Two sources say USS Lake Erie and USS Newport News have been ordered to the southern Caribbean and are expected to arrive by early next week.
  • The new movements follow the dispatch of an amphibious squadron — USS San Antonio, USS Iwo Jima and USS Fort Lauderdale — carrying about 4,500 personnel, including roughly 2,200 Marines.
  • At least three Aegis destroyers are already operating off Venezuela, with U.S. officials citing President Donald Trump’s authority to target designated narco‑terrorist organizations.
  • Washington has raised the reward for information leading to Nicolás Maduro’s capture to $50 million, as the Justice Department accuses him of leading the Cartel de los Soles.
  • Maduro denounces the deployment as an illegal regime‑change bid and urges a mass militia mobilization, while China and regional blocs publicly condemn the U.S. buildup and call for respect for sovereignty.