Trump calls the operation a warning to traffickers
President Donald Trump confirmed Tuesday that US forces carried out a military strike against a vessel allegedly tied to Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua cartel, killing 11 people in the southern Caribbean. The attack took place in international waters, according to Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Rubio described the targeted ship as part of a common trafficking route originating in Venezuela, framing the strike as a strategic move to disrupt cartel operations in the region.
Trump defends action
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said: “At my direction, US forces conducted a kinetic strike against identified Tren de Aragua narcoterrorists in SOUTHCOM’s area of responsibility. This organization, under Nicolás Maduro, has carried out killings, drug trafficking, human trafficking, and acts of terror throughout the Americas.”
He added: “Let this be a warning to anyone contemplating sending drugs into the United States. You will be stopped.”
The State Department designated Tren de Aragua as a foreign terrorist organization and a global terrorist entity earlier this year.
Rubio emphasizes ongoing efforts
Before departing for Mexico and Ecuador, Rubio said the US would continue its counter-narcotics operations. “We are committed to taking on the cartels that are killing Americans by flooding our communities with drugs,” he said. When asked about the legal authority for military action, Rubio declined to provide details, noting that the groups involved had been officially recognized as terrorist organizations.
Trump later told reporters that the military had “just taken out a drug vessel” and indicated that further operations were planned.
Strengthened US presence
A senior defense official confirmed the strike as a “precision operation” but withheld additional information. Reports indicate that over 4,000 US Marines and sailors have been deployed across the Caribbean and Latin America, bolstering America’s capacity for direct intervention against organized crime.
Defense expert Tom Karako of the Center for Strategic and International Studies said such missions are rarely publicized. “It wouldn’t surprise me if multiple similar strikes have taken place quietly,” he said.
Maduro reacts
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro condemned the strike, calling it “criminal and violent.” He stated that his government was prepared for “maximum readiness” in response to what he described as Washington’s military pressure.
The Trump administration has previously placed a $50 million bounty on Maduro, accusing him of directing drug trafficking operations.
The operation marks a notable escalation in US policy toward Latin American cartels, treating them as terrorist threats and authorizing direct military engagement.
