The top US military adviser visited Puerto Rico on Monday as Washington continues one of its biggest naval operations in the Caribbean in many years.
The mission is meant to increase pressure on Venezuela, whose government the US accuses of being closely linked to drug-trafficking.
General Dan Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and President Donald Trump’s main military adviser, met troops in Puerto Rico and on a Navy warship nearby. His office said he wanted to thank service members for their work on regional missions.
It is his second visit since the Pentagon expanded operations in the Caribbean. The US has deployed the Gerald R. Ford, its newest and largest aircraft carrier. During Caine’s earlier trip, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the Marines were “on the front lines of defending the American homeland”.
The operation comes as Trump considers more actions against Venezuela. He has refused to rule out aggressive steps. US maritime strikes on boats accused of drug trafficking have killed at least 83 people on 21 vessels. The US has not shown evidence of drugs on the boats. Legal experts say the attacks would probably break international law even if drugs were found.
Trump told advisers on Monday that he plans to speak directly with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro soon.
Around 15,000 US personnel are now in the Caribbean. This includes Marines on amphibious ships and about 5,000 troops based in Puerto Rico. The US has also increased joint exercises with Trinidad and Tobago, starting a second set of drills within a month to fight violent crime and drug trafficking.
Caine is expected to visit Trinidad and Tobago next, where he will meet Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar.
The US has also increased pressure by labeling the Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organisation, even though it is not a traditional cartel. Until recently, this label was mostly used for groups like al-Qaeda and ISIL.
On Monday, Washington formally named the Cartel de los Soles as a group that ships drugs into the US. Officials say it includes Maduro and senior Venezuelan leaders, but they have offered no proof. Venezuela called the move “ridiculous”, saying the group does not exist.
The US has already targeted eight other Latin American criminal groups tied to drug trafficking and migrant smuggling. Officials say the Cartel de los Soles has worked with Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang, which is also now labelled a terrorist group.
US officials rarely say which groups they believe were behind the boats struck by American forces. Hegseth said the new terrorist designation gives the US “a whole bunch of new options” for dealing with Maduro. When asked about possible land strikes inside Venezuela, he said nothing was ruled in or out. Sanctions experts say the law does not allow military action.
Venezuela denies any link to criminal networks and says the US wants regime change to take its natural resources.
Oil Minister Delcy Rodriguez said the US wants Venezuela’s oil, gas, gold, diamonds, iron and bauxite “for nothing, without paying”.
Foreign Minister Yvan Gil said the US is repeating an old lie to justify an illegal intervention.
InSight Crime, a research group, says the “cartel” idea is an oversimplification. It argues the system is better described as corruption involving military and political officials who profit by working with traffickers.
The US campaign has caused debate at home. A Reuters poll found only 29 percent of Americans support killing suspected traffickers on sight in international waters without any kind of judicial warrant. A former Treasury official said the ‘terrorist’ label was never meant to justify warlike military operations.
Source: Al Jazeera.
