President Donald Trump euphorically concluded his White House property league connected September 2 with breaking news: the US subject had conscionable blown up a tiny centrifugal vas successful the mediate of the Caribbean Sea. He alleged that the skiff came from Venezuela and was loaded with illicit drugs headed to the US.
By Roger D. Harris and Joe Emersberger
On societal media, helium further embellished his storyby sayingthat the unit were members of the Tren de Aragua cartel, which Trump claims is controlled by Venezuelan President Nicols Maduro. Trump alleges that this cartel is liable for wide murder, cause trafficking, enactment trafficking, and acts of unit crossed the US.
Evidence blown retired of the water
There was nary effort to halt and hunt the vessel successful planetary waters, earlier murdering the crew. This gruesomepracticearrogates to the US authorities the extrajudicial powerfulness to termination anyone with whom it unilaterally declares itself to beryllium astatine war.
The eleven victims are conscionable a driblet successful the imperial humor bucket compared to the US-sponsored genocide successful Gaza. But the homicidal triumph was utilized by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio tocrowabout the afloat powerfulness of America, the afloat mightiness of the United States.
Madurorespondedthat nary 1 believes Trumps and Rubios lies: they travel for Venezuelan lipid and gas, they privation them for free.
The time earlier the incident, Maduro presciently warned that the US couldcreate a mendacious positiveto warrant the US subject deployment. Claims person circulated that the incidentmay person been fakedby AI. If true, thats not overmuch of a relief. It simply means Trumps subject escalation against Venezuela has begun astatine a little level than helium claims.
Maduro alluded to the fabricated Gulf of Tonkin incidental and the detonation of the Maine, which precipitated the 1964 Vietnam and the 1898 Spanish-American War, respectively. Maduro besides mentioned the WMD hoax that was utilized to warrant the 2003 US penetration of Iraq.
Maduro mightiness besides person noted that President Bill Clinton bombed Sudan,diverting attentionfrom his Monica Lewinsky enactment scandal. Trump is present facing akin difficulties owed to his adjacent relationship with the deceased pedophileJeffrey Epstein
A decapitation onslaught effort connected Venezuela foretold
All the elements, particularly US impunity, are successful spot to yet effort a decapitation onslaught eliminating the South American nations leadership.
Trump ominouslyboastedat his property league determination is much wherever that came from for Venezuela. Just 4 days earlier, Washingtonshistoric partnerIsrael had assassinated the Yemeni premier curate and his civilian cabinet. Arguably, the connection spouse understates the intimate level of integration betwixt the two. The Israelis person been perpetrating a live-streamed genocide successful Gaza for implicit 700 days portion receivingdaily airliftsof subject supplies nether some Biden and Trump.
Decapitation of an enemys enactment has go a maneuver for the partners. Aside from Yemen, the Israelis launched a devastating decapitation onslaught connected Hezbollah successful Lebanon on with a likewise brazen 1 of apical Iranian leaders during its twelve-day warfare with Tehran. In 2020, Trump murdered Iranian General Qassem Soleimani with a drone.
Trump signed an enforcement bid designating cause cartels asforeign violent organizationsthe time helium returned to the presidency. USmilitary were deployedto the Caribbean adjacent Venezuela nether the ruse of cause interdiction. Shortly afterwards, The New York Timesreported a leakedsecret orderauthorizing the usage of the US subject to intervene successful different countries against cause cartels.
Also successful August, the reward connected the caput of Maduro was doubled to $50 cardinal with lesser rewards for different apical officials. US sanctions present widen to the heads of the authorities lipid and proscription companies, ultimate tribunal justices, electoral councilors, nationalist assembly politicians, assorted subject and information heads, and truthful forth; successful short, a enactment deed list.
Trump doesnt really attraction astir the USs amerciable cause problem
The US is so flooded with drugs, but Trumps interest is insincere. Otherwise, helium would person mobilized against trafficking wrong the US and adjacent allies likeEcuador. Instead Trump diverts nationalist attraction by scapegoating Venezuela, a state that contributes to the occupation negligibly.
Illicit cause income successful the US areestimatedat $200$750 billion, including caller synthetics. Remarkably, the lone different home commodity that comes adjacent successful measurement is ineligible pharmaceuticals astatine $600 billion, followed by lipid and state astatine $400 billion. Indeed, the US is thelargest consumerof amerciable drugs and a majorsupplier of weaponsanddrug precursor chemicalsfor the cartels. As the worlds starring narcoticsmoney launderer, salient US banks implicated see HSBC Bank USA, Wachovia, Wells Fargo, and Bank of America.
We perpetually perceive astir Latin American cause kingpins, butwho distributes the dope erstwhile it crosses the borderis near unanswered. Research by Mexican writer Jorge Esquiveldemonstratesthat nary US medication has ever earnestly investigated home cause trafficking networks. Venezuelan planetary expert Sergio GelfensteinassertsWashington has nary involvement whatsoever successful combating the cause trade; it is conscionable excessively large and profitable.
Besides, cause usage serves to pacify youth, African Americans, and different perchance dissident demographics. Journalist Gary Webbexposedhow cause trafficking connected the streets of Los Angeles successful the 1980s helped money the CIA-backed Contras successful Nicaragua. And opium accumulation was virtually eradicated successful Afghanistan earlier the US penetration of 2001, lone toexplodeagain nether nonstop US subject occupation.
Fake menace of Venezuelan cause trafficking
What theUS truly seeks is authorities changeand determination control, thinly veiled down cause warfare rhetoric, according to The Cradle.
The authoritative 2025 UNWorld Drug Reportfeatured minimal notation of Venezuela, emphasizing that it plays a marginal relation successful planetary cause trafficking. The study confirms that Venezuela is simply a territory mostly escaped of cause cultivation and processing, arsenic good arsenic immoderate important planetary cartel presence. Nor does the study notation the fictitious Cartel of the Suns, which the US claims Maduro heads.
Despite the Tren de Araguas designation by the US arsenic aterrorist organization, the quality assemblage itselfrefutesthat it is controlled by Maduro oregon is adjacent a highly functioning planetary narcotics cartel.
The defender rails are down for imperialist aggression
Democrats whitethorn carp astir the optics of Trumps actions, but they person been bipartisan partners successful absorption to the Bolivarian Revolutions effort to physique socialism successful the 21st period ever since Hugo Chvez was archetypal elected Venezuelas president successful 1998. Note, each US Senatorvoted to confirmMarco Rubio arsenic Trumps Secretary of State.
The alleged planetary assemblage and its institutions specified arsenic the United Nations person been powerless to halt the US/zionist warfare connected Palestine fto unsocial 1 successful Uncle Sams backyard. Welcome to thepost-Gaza genocideworld.
And lets not hide the perfidy of large quality rights NGOs similar Amnesty International, which absurdly and hystericallyallegesthat the Venezuelan governments cruelty knows nary bounds, nicely timed to warrant US imperialism.
The US aggression connected Venezuela is intelligibly escalating from backing of absorption elements, lawfare, and sanctions, positive occasional coup attempts and sabotage. Now, nonstop subject confrontation is possible, which could impact an effort to assassinate the full Bolivarian leadership.
The reported4,500 US troopsrecently deployed to the Caribbean could ne'er instrumentality Venezuela adjacent if they were multiplied manyfold. But caller past suggests that the US often avoids a afloat US troop-heavy occupation. In Haiti, Libya, and Syria, the US alternatively opted for chaos alternatively than permitting insubordinate states to survive.
Resistance by Venezuela hasstiffenedto conscionable the challenge. Civilian-military unity has remained strong. Thisvideo clipshows artisanal sportfishing boats accompanying 1 of the mobilized Venezuelan naval ships. Shortly earlier the US destroyed the alleged cause boat, President Maduro had declared a "republic successful arms." And millions of civilian reservists person enlisted successful the Bolivarian National Militia, a subdivision of the Venezuelan equipped forces, portion regular troops person been dispatched to the Colombian border.
Many determination leadersalong with the regionalALBAorganization person condemned the US subject buildup. Further afield, Russia, Iran, and China each stated their enactment of Venezuela. And planetary grassroots enactment for Venezuelas sovereignty has been overwhelmingly positive, condemning Yankeewarfare.
For humanity,Venezuelas Bolivarian Revolution represents hope; for the US imperial project, which seeks to crush immoderate alternate to its order, it is simply a threat. To unit authorities alteration successful Caracas, Washington whitethorn effort to destruct the existent enactment oregon prosecute different tactic. The method matters little than the extremity either installing a compliant vassal or, failing that, leaving the state successful chaos. The unit volition truthful continue, and apt intensify.
Roger D. Harrisis a founding subordinate of theVenezuela Solidarity Networkand connected the secretariat of theUS Peace Council.Joe Emersbergeris co-author of "Extraordinary Threat: The US Empire, the Media, and Twenty Years of Coup Attempts successful Venezuela.
Pressenza New York