Axios: Trump May Be Preparing An Operation To Topple Maduro's Regime In Venezuela
- 29.08.2025, 21:04
Lukashenko's "friend" has already panicked.
The US, under the guise of fighting drug trafficking in Venezuela, may try to overthrow the regime of dictator Nicolas Maduro. Washington has already pledged $50 million for help in his capture.
This is reported by Axios.
The publication says the US has already sent seven ships with 4,500 military personnel to Venezuela's shores. Among the ships are three destroyers that carry guided missiles. At least one submarine has also been moved to the shores of Venezuela.
According to Axios, even the closest advisers to US President Donald Trump are not sure that the ships with soldiers have been moved to Venezuela as part of an operation to combat drug trafficking. They allow for an operation to overthrow the government in Caracas.
In particular, White House spokeswoman Carolyn Leavitt has already hinted at the ambiguity of the mission, noting that the U.S. considers Maduro a "fugitive ringleader" of a drug cartel, not the legitimate president of Venezuela.
"It's 105% about narco-terrorism, but if Maduro is no longer in power, no one will cry foul," an unnamed Trump administration official told reporters.
Another administration official conceded that the U.S. could conduct an operation similar to the one that took place in 1989, when Panamanian President Manuel Noriega, who was also accused of drug trafficking, was captured.
"Keeping Maduro in power in Venezuela is like putting Jeffrey Epstein in charge of a kindergarten," another Trump adviser said.
Axios noted that the group sent to Venezuela's shores includes 2,200 Marines. And that's hardly typical of operations that are aimed at fighting drug cartels.
In turn, Maduro has already accused the U.S. of trying to overthrow the regime.
"What they are threatening Venezuela with - regime change, a military terrorist attack - is immoral, criminal and illegal," he said.
While Maduro's ally in the leftist camp, Colombian President Gustavo Petro, circulated a rossMedia throw-in that accuses the US of intending to seize Venezuela's oil.
According to the publication, the US administration's main hope is that Maduro will either step down voluntarily or be eliminated by the military, which expects to be rewarded or establish relations with Washington.
A direct invasion seems unlikely, but officials almost certainly expect active interceptions of suspicious drug ships off Venezuelan shores.
"Some ships will certainly be detained or destroyed," one of the journalists' sources said.
Air strikes are also possible, with potential targets including sparsely populated jungles with coca plantations or cartel activity, as well as a recently built Russian munitions factory.
Part of Trump's advisers concede that Maduro could be the target of a drone strike because he is officially recognized as a terrorist, though Axios sources say that scenario is unlikely.