With President Donald Trump launching a new 'War on Drugs' offensive using the U.S. military to target drug cartels tied to the Nicholas Maduro regime in Venezuela, could the kinetic force being used be a precursor for a larger, more ambitious military operation (s) directed at Dictator Maduro?
While the Trump administration is not saying they are planning to oust Maduro, or even target his government, that has been linked to the "Cartel of the Suns," the increasing military presence in the Western Hemisphere, specifically the naval presence off the coast of Venezuela, could be telling a different story.
Currently, along with a squadron of U.S. Air Force F-35s, there are no fewer than 10 U.S. naval vessels in international waters around Venezuela, including the secretive "ghost ship" MV Ocean Trader, "Special Warfare Support" vessel used to support special operations.
The "Cartel of the Suns" is a term used to identify groups within the Venezuelan military that are involved in drug trafficking, illegal mining, and other criminal activities.
The drug boats that the U.S. military has recently neutralized may have been operated by corrupt Venezuelan military forces, not just everyday drug traffickers.
During a recent trip to Mexico City met with Mexican Foreign Secretary Juan Ramón de la Fuente, Secretary of State Marco Rubio was very specific and direct in his remarks about President Trump's initiative to "wage war on narcoterrorist organizations" that threaten American interests and citizens.
"The President of the United States is going to wage war on narcoterrorist organizations," said Secretary Rubio. "The President has declared that these organizations – Tren de Aragua, Cártel de los Soles, and others – these groups are narcoterrorists. These are narcoterrorist groups, designated so by the U.S., operating in international waters, and their destination is taking drugs to the U.S. streets."
Rubio, who was once targeted for assassination by "Cartel de los Soles" henchman and current Venezuelan Minister of Interior, Justice and Peace, Diosdado Cabello, noted that a grand jury made up of Americans in New York had indicted Cabello, Maduro, and others on drug trafficking.
There is currently a $50 million reward for Maduro.
"The President of the United States has determined that narcoterrorist organizations pose a threat to the national security of the United States. I don’t need to explain to you why. They are traffickers of people, they are traffickers of deadly drugs, and they are traffickers of all kinds of (inaudible), and they use the money that they generate to destabilize governments in the region, which in and of itself then poses a threat to the United States," added Rubio.
Rubio also expressed his concern that Maduro's drug trafficking ring, alongside others criminal organizations, "pose an immediate threat to the United States" and that President Trump was going to stop them at any cost.
Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R), who served alongside then-Senator Rubio, recently warned Maduro and his "Cartel de los Soles' was living on borrowed time.
"The Cartel of the Suns has been desperately seeking ways to reach President Trump, to negotiate, to buy more time, but that's over now," Rep. Diaz-Balart in an interview. “I would recommend that they realize who the president of the USA is. Let them ask Soleimani”
Reiterating what Rubio said about Maduro being a threat to U.S. national security, Rep. Diaz-Balart stated: "This is not a show, this is not a spectacle. He is going to protect the interests of the United States and he is going to protect the lives of our youth, who are being poisoned by these narco-cartels"
Another South Florida lawmaker, Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R) asserted that the Maduro regime was "on its knees" and that its "inevitable" collapse was nearing.
If Maduro were to fall, U.S. energy companies would not mourn his departure. For years, Maduro has been skirted the "Maximum pressure" oil sanctions levied by President Trump during his first term in office with the help of its allies, Iran, China, and Russia.
American scholars have been pushing for the lifting of economic sanctions against Maduro because they appear to have stopped being effective.
American oil companies with existing and massive monetary investment and infrastructure in Venezuela are most-likely closely watching to see if Maduro is toppled.
Maduro gone is good for business and national security.
