Donald Trump’s military build-up off the coast of Venezuela is aimed at convincing President Nicolás Maduro and his inner circle that staying in power will be more costly than leaving, according to Venezuelan opposition figures and analysts.
When the US ordered its largest deployment of warships and fighter jets to the Caribbean in more than 30 years, the mission was initially billed as a war on drug trafficking. Attacks to destroy small boats that the American president said were smuggling drugs soon followed. But the focus has shifted.
The priority now is to force the departure of top Venezuelan government figures, preferably via resignation or an arranged handover — but with the clear threat that if Maduro and his inner circle cling to power, the Americans may use targeted military force to capture or kill them.