Trump "does not rule out" a war with Venezuela

BarcelonaDonald Trump is keeping the door open to war with Venezuela. After months of indiscriminate bombings of alleged drug-laden boats in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean that have left more than 100 dead, the US president stated that he "does not rule out" a war with the Nicolás Maduro regime in a telephone interview with NBC News recorded this Thursday and broadcast on Friday. The White House ordered on Tuesday a blockade of the entry and exit of sanctioned oil tankers from Venezuela, just one week after having A vessel loaded with oil was seized off the Venezuelan coast.And the US administration has no intention of letting up. Trump states in the interview that there will be more tanker seizures, and when asked when these seizures will take place, he replies: "It depends. If they're foolish enough to keep sailing, we'll take them to one of our ports."

One of the hypotheses that has gained the most traction regarding Washington's strategy in Venezuela is that it intends to overthrow the Maduro regime. When the journalist asked him if this was his objective, Trump refused to confirm it and simply said: "He knows exactly what I want." "He knows better than anyone," maintains the Republican leader, who He had a phone call with Maduro in November.

Just hours after the interview aired, the US administration explained that it had destroyed two more suspected drug-trafficking vessels in the Western Pacific and killed five crew members allegedly involved in "drug trafficking operations." Both attacks occurred this Thursday under the orders of Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, according to the military.

A broken promise

Trump's predisposition to get bogged down in war has not gone unnoticed. It breaks with the thesis he maintained until now, the one he adopted upon entering the White House: the promise to keep the United States out of foreign conflicts. "I will not start any wars," were his words after winning the election; "I will stop wars." But under the pretext of fighting drug trafficking, Trump has been moving away from this commitment and, in fact, has promised on several occasions that he will "soon" begin attacking alleged drug trafficking targets within Venezuelan territory.

However, this obsession is beginning to take its toll at home. His base criticizes him for focusing too much on foreign policy instead of paying attention to the problems affecting his citizens, while inflation is rampant and job problems mean that many Americans can't make ends meet. In fact, Trump's popularity has fallen to historic lows and only 36% approve of the work of his administration.