President Donald Trump has refused to dismiss the possibility of ordering military strikes within Venezuelan territory as part of his administration’s campaign against drug cartels.
The move comes amid a series of lethal U.S. strikes on ships at sea allegedly tied to narcoterrorism. The White House has formally categorized its counter-drug operations as part of a “non-international armed conflict” with cartel groups.
Critics argue that extending operations into Venezuela would require confronting that country’s air defenses and escalate the conflict into open military confrontation. Some lawmakers have already introduced resolutions seeking to restrain executive use of force.
Supporters counter that such action is necessary to disrupt cartel networks that use Venezuelan soil as a launch point for fentanyl and other illicit flows into the U.S.