- President Trump urged airlines to consider Venezuela's airspace completely closed
- The warning was posted on Trump's Truth Social from his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida
- Trump addressed airlines, pilots, drug dealers, and human traffickers in the message
President Donald Trump said airlines should consider the airspace above and around Venezuela to be closed as his administration continues to threaten more aggressive steps against President Nicolas Maduro's government.
US forces have been massing in the region as Trump weighs military action that would go beyond US strikes on boats that Washington claims are ferrying narcotics toward the US.
In recent days, Trump has hinted at potential US operations on land in Venezuela, but stopped short of specifying whether the US would begin such strikes, or when.
Trump's vague announcement Saturday about the country's airspace may prove to be a bid for leverage in any eventual negotiations with Maduro, whether held directly or indirectly. Or it could be a precursor to expanded strikes in the region, which have been carried out so far against boats under suspect legal authority and drawn concern from allies.
“To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers, please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY,” Trump wrote in a social post from his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.
To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers, please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY. Thank you for your attention to this matter! PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP
The White House didn't immediately respond to a request for elaboration.
Earlier this week Maduro asked Venezuelans to “give their lives” if needed to defend the nation from “imperialist attacks.” Still, life has carried on normally for most Venezuelans despite the mounting threats, with the capital buzzing ahead of Christmas celebrations and people pouring out of stores for Black Friday discounts.
The US in recent months has been intensifying pressure on Caracas, part of a counter-narcotics operation targeting drug trafficking that the Trump administration says is being led by Maduro's regime.
The Trump administration has formally designated Venezuela's Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organization — which the US is pointing to as legal authority for certain operations, and Venezuela argues is a falsehood to justify an intervention.
At the same time, Trump said he plans to pardon a former president of Honduras who is serving a decades-long US sentence for cocaine trafficking, two days before that nation's election.
Trump's Venezuela campaign has seen the US build up its military presence in the region, including with an aircraft carrier and warships, and senior American military officials meeting leaders in the Caribbean.
Trump spoke with Maduro last week and the two discussed a possible meeting, although they haven't made plans for such an event, the New York Times reported on Friday.
Airlines began canceling flights in and out of Venezuela in response to a US Federal Aviation Administration advisory on Nov. 22 telling operators to “exercise caution” amid the escalating standoff between the two countries.
A wave of electromagnetic noise that's descended over Venezuela amid the US military buildup is interfering with GPS signals in the country and complicating operations for some ride-sharing and food delivery apps. Combined with increased Venezuelan military exercises, the skies over the country have become more and more of a no-go zone for commercial aircraft.
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