Overview
- Defense Secretary Hegse announced the 'Southern Spear' operation targeting drug-trafficking networks, led by a joint task force under U.S. Southern Command.
- Washington Post reporting says President Trump is considering an attack on Venezuela, and the military is preparing for possible orders, though no decision has been confirmed.
- Senior officials, including Hegse, Joint Chiefs Chair Kane, Vice President Vance and Secretary of State Rubio, met at the White House to discuss options that include ground or special-operations raids.
- U.S. deployments include the carrier Gerald R. Ford, destroyers and F-35 aircraft, with roughly 15,000 personnel positioned near Venezuela according to multiple media reports.
- U.S. forces have repeatedly targeted suspected drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific under the counter-narcotics campaign, media reports say.