U.S. carrier, bombers and jets in Venezuela show of force

The US has moved to the brink of a full-scale regional confrontation with Venezuela, unveiling Operation Southern Spear while deploying one of the most powerful carrier strike groups ever sent to Latin America.

In a statement on X, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said “today, I’m announcing Operation SOUTHERN SPEAR… this mission defends our Homeland, removes narco-terrorists from our Hemisphere, and secures our Homeland from the drugs that are killing our people.”

He added that “the Western Hemisphere is America’s neighborhood – and we will protect it.”

The announcement coincided with a US Navy release showing the Gerald R Ford Carrier Strike Group conducting integrated air operations with a US Air Force B-52 on 13 November. The formation included USS Gerald R Ford, three destroyers, and embarked F/A-18E/F Super Hornets, operating as what the Navy described as “a joint, multi-domain force… in support of the U.S. Southern Command mission, Department of War-directed operations, and the President’s priorities to disrupt illicit drug trafficking and protect the homeland.”

The deployment is widely viewed as one of the largest American military build-ups in the region in decades. The Ford is expected to take station off Venezuela within days, a move that goes far beyond routine counternarcotics patrols and has drawn speculation about coercive pressure on Nicolás Maduro’s government.

SOUTHCOM separately highlighted that US Marines aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima were carrying out artillery training in the Caribbean, describing the activity as aligned with President Trump’s priorities for disrupting drug networks and bolstering homeland defence.

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro responded on state television, insisting Washington was fabricating a pretext for military action. He said “since they cannot say that we have hidden biological or chemical weapons, they invent a bizarre narrative,” rejecting long-standing US accusations of drug trafficking and warning that the build-up threatens regional stability.