The United States has escalated its counter narcotics posture in the Caribbean with the launch of Operation Southern Spear, a mission announced by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and framed as a Trump-ordered effort to remove what Washington is calling narco terrorists from the Western Hemisphere.
Hegseth declared that Joint Task Force Southern Spear and US Southern Command will conduct the operation. His announcement stated that it will “defend the Homeland, remove narco terrorists from our Hemisphere, and secure our Homeland from the drugs that are killing our people.” He added “the Western Hemisphere is America’s neighbourhood and we will protect it.”
Southern Spear follows months of US military activity in the region. Since August, the United States has moved warships, F-35s, surveillance aircraft and Marines to the southern Caribbean. Material on the deployment records a series of strikes on suspected smuggling boats, including vessels linked to gangs in Venezuela and Colombia. One early strike killed eleven people aboard a boat the United States said was carrying drug traffickers.
Washington has also increased intelligence activity in the region. The CIA is said to be playing a significant role in tracking trafficking networks as part of a wider push to pressure the Maduro government. US officials have not ruled out further strikes, though most analysts still see a large scale land operation against Venezuela as unlikely.
The Hill reports that Trump, Joint Chiefs Chair Dan Caine and senior commanders briefed on military options this week, including potential land strikes against Venezuelan targets. US officials characterise this as contingency planning.
Regional governments are responding with concern. Venezuela has conducted large military exercises and argues that the US posture threatens its sovereignty. The country’s leadership says it will respond if attacked. There have also been air intercept incidents, including Venezuelan F-16s flying over a US Navy destroyer.
Southern Spear now formalises what had already become the largest US military presence in the Caribbean for decades. What remains unclear is the operational threshold that triggers further strikes and how far the administration intends to push what it calls a security mission in America’s neighbourhood.
Another war they will not win I fear.