Venezuelan President brandishes sword amid rising US tensions

Nicolás Maduro intensified Venezuela’s confrontation with the United States as he appeared at a Caracas march holding a sword and urging supporters to prepare for foreign aggression, reported Sky News on November 26.

His dramatic display came amid heightened tensions with the Donald Trump administration, which has expanded military operations targeting suspected drug-trafficking vessels.

Wearing camouflage, the 63-year-old leader told the crowd that the nation must be ready to defend every part of its territory from external threats. Maduro has ordered a full-scale mobilisation of Venezuela’s military in preparation for any further U.S. military intervention.

Since September, U.S. forces have carried out strikes in international waters against boats Washington says were involved in narcotics smuggling, killing more than 80 people.

Officials in the United States claim several of the vessels embarked from Venezuela, a position Maduro rejects, calling the operations an assault on the country’s sovereignty which are laying the foundation for regime change in Caracas.

Cuba has also entered the dispute, accusing the United States of attempting to forcefully remove Maduro from power and describing the increased American military presence in the region as “exaggerated and aggressive.”

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said such an effort would be dangerous, illegal, and could unleash widespread instability. He appealed directly to people in the United States, warning that continued escalation could cause “an incalculable number of deaths.”

Speculation has grown after reports indicated that Washington may launch the next phase of Venezuela-focused operations in the coming days or weeks. Critics argue that the campaign amounts to extrajudicial killings, and a recent poll shows only 29% of U.S. voters support the approach.

Venezuelan minister Delcy Rodriguez accused the United States of trying to seize the country’s natural resources, listing oil, gas, gold, diamonds, iron, and bauxite among them. Trump, like his predecessor Joe Biden, does not recognise Maduro as Venezuela’s leader.

Maduro is serving a third term after being declared the winner of the previous year’s election, even though evidence indicated the opposition, led by Nobel peace prize winner María Corina Machado, won by a two-to-one margin.

Maduro’s government continues to face allegations of human rights abuses. The United States recently designated the Venezuelan Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organisation, a claim Venezuelan officials dismiss as fiction.

Trump, speaking aboard Air Force One en route to Florida for Thanksgiving, suggested he might be open to speaking with Maduro, saying he preferred resolving the situation “the easy way.”

Sky News, Maghrebi.org