Trump briefed on military options for Venezuela
Senior U.S. military officials have briefed President Donald Trump on a range of updated options for potential military operations in Venezuela, including the possibility of land strikes, according to multiple reports.
The briefing, as detailed by CBS News, involved Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine, and other high-level national security officials. Intelligence agencies also provided input into the planning, the sources said.
This comes amid a marked U.S. military buildup in the region: the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, carrying around 60 aircraft, recently arrived in the U.S. Southern Command area north of the Caribbean. While the briefing outlined aggressive options, several officials emphasized that no final decision has been made.
In parallel, Trump has publicly acknowledged that he authorized the CIA to conduct covert operations inside Venezuela. He also suggested that his administration is seriously considering land-based military operations, citing ongoing threats linked to drug trafficking.
Some of the military options reportedly laid out to Trump include: air strikes on Venezuelan military installations, drug trafficking routes, and possibly even a more direct mission to target Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro or his inner circle. Other less likely scenarios mentioned in reports involve special operations forces to capture key regime figures.
At the same time, the legal basis for any land attack seems unclear. According to some lawmakers briefed on the matter, the current legal arguments underpinning U.S. action cover maritime strikes but do not necessarily authorize operations on Venezuelan soil.
Venezuela’s President Maduro has strongly reacted, warning against an “Afghanistan-style ‘forever war’” and calling for peace while condemning U.S. escalation.
