The U.S. military announced another strike against suspected drug traffickers in the Pacific Ocean on Sunday as President Donald Trump suggested diplomatic talks could soon take place with Venezuela.
The strike, delivered on Saturday, marks at least 21 times the U.S. military has blown up a boat or submarine in international waters around South America in the administration’s effort to curb the flow of illicit drugs into the United States.
“On Nov. 15, at the direction of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organization. Intelligence confirmed that the vessel was involved in illicit narcotics smuggling, transiting along a known narco-trafficking route, and carrying narcotics,” U.S. Southern Command announced in a post on X that was shared by Hegseth.
“Three male narco-terrorists aboard the vessel were killed. The vessel was trafficking narcotics in the Eastern Pacific and was struck in international waters,” it added.
The latest strike comes as tensions between the United States and Venezuela have soared over U.S. military buildup in the region and tough talk from Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who the U.S. views as illegitimate and a significant factor in drug smuggling to the United States. Trump said Sunday evening that the United States and Maduro’s regime may be opening discussions soon.
In the middle of a rally in Caracas on Thursday, Maduro told CNN that he would like the American people to reject war with Venezuela. His message to Americans was “to unite for the peace of (the Americas). No more endless wars. No more unjust wars. No more Libya. No more Afghanistan.”
Asked what his message is to Trump, Maduro said, “Yes peace, yes peace.”
Maduro has warned against potential U.S. military action, mobilizing Venezuela’s military and volunteer forces. He has also appeared to deploy additional air-defense systems, including Russian-made units.
On Sunday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that the Cartel de los Soles, a cartel headed by Maduro, would be designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
“Headed by the illegitimate Nicolás Maduro, the group has corrupted the institutions of government in Venezuela and is responsible for terrorist violence conducted by and with other designated FTOs as well as for trafficking drugs into the United States and Europe,” Rubio said in a post on X.
