Trump Gives Update On Plans To Deal With Venezuela

President Donald Trump signaled this week that he has “sort of made up” his mind on the direction of U.S. policy toward Venezuela, following a series of high-level strategy meetings with senior military officials. The president suggested that a major decision is imminent, but declined to reveal specifics.

“I sort of made up my mind,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, according to The Hill. “I can’t tell you what it is, but we made a lot of progress with Venezuela in terms of stopping drugs from pouring in.”

The administration has steadily ratcheted up pressure on Nicolás Maduro, openly calling the Venezuelan strongman an “illegitimate leader” and accusing his regime of running a vast narcotics-trafficking enterprise. Maduro has repeatedly denied those charges.

Throughout the week, President Trump received detailed briefings from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and top Pentagon commanders outlining U.S. options against Caracas — including potential land-based strikes, according to officials familiar with the discussions.

At the same time, U.S. forces have expanded maritime operations targeting what the administration characterizes as “narco-terrorist” vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. Since early September, American forces have destroyed 20 boats and killed at least 80 individuals linked to drug-smuggling networks, officials said.

The buildup is part of a broader surge of U.S. military strength in the Southern Command region, including warships, Marine units, fighter jets, surveillance aircraft, and specialized intelligence assets. Senior officials say the goal is to choke off narcotics trafficking routes and protect U.S. national security.

On Thursday, Hegseth announced the start of a new hemispheric counterterrorism and intelligence campaign known as Operation Southern Spear. The initiative, he said, is aimed at targeting and dismantling “narco-terrorist” infrastructure across the Southcom theater, according to The Hill.

President Trump hinted during his CBS “60 Minutes” interview that Maduro should not assume he will escape consequences, suggesting the embattled socialist leader’s “days are numbered.”

The president has previously acknowledged considering military strikes on Venezuela, though he has not executed those plans.

Brian Finucane, a senior adviser at the International Crisis Group, told The Hill that Hegseth’s announcement “continues to emphasize the Trump administration’s narrative that these maritime strikes are somehow related to counterterrorism.”

Meanwhile, Maduro has reportedly grown increasingly desperate to halt the intensifying U.S. operations. Last month, President Trump confirmed that Maduro has “offered everything” in an effort to negotiate relief — a comment he delivered bluntly, and with a profanity, during a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

“It’s been reported, Mr. President—it has been reported that Maduro offered everything in his country, all the natural resources,” a reporter asked. “He even recorded a message to you in English recently, offering mediation. What could he do in order to stop that?”

“He has offered everything. He’s offered everything. You’re right. You know why?” the President replied. “Because he doesn’t want to f*** around with the United States.”

The remark drew gasps from the press corps and quiet laughter from nearby officials — and underscored the deepening pressure the Trump administration is exerting on Caracas as it targets “narco-terrorist” assets operating out of Venezuelan waters.

Reports indicate Maduro has reached out to multiple global figures in a last-ditch effort to secure mediation, including Pope Leo XIV.

“I have great faith that Pope Leo, as I stated in the letter I sent him, will help Venezuela preserve and achieve peace and stability,” Maduro said earlier this month, following a series of successful U.S. strikes on cartel-connected vessels.