Featured Image Credit: Getty Images/Samuel Corum
Topics: Donald Trump, Drugs, Military, World News
William Morgan
Topics: Donald Trump, Drugs, Military, World News
The largest aircraft carrier in the world, along with its associated group of strike aircraft, has entered the seas of South America as the Trump administration escalates a massive military build-up.
The deployment of the highly advanced USS Gerald R Ford carrier group to the region surrounding Latin America follows a Department of War (formerly Department of Defense) directive to carry out Commander-in-Chief Trump's directive to dismantle the alleged drug cartels.
Chief Pentagon Spokesperson Sean Parnell said the aircraft carrier's deployment would 'bolster US capacity to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit actors and activities that compromise the safety and prosperity of the United States homeland'.
Parnell made no direct reference to Venezuela, instead stating that the move would enhance the US' ability 'to disrupt narcotics trafficking and degrade and dismantle Transnational Criminal Organizations'.
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With the largest US force in South America since the 1989 invasion of Panama gathering near his country's territorial waters, Venezuela's authoritarian President Nicolás Maduro has announced a 'massive deployment' of civil and military forces across the nation, with the hopes of deterring a possible invasion.
Donald Trump has explained the growing military presence in the international waters off Venezuela as part of his attempt to smash drug smuggling networks, which has already seen an estimated 76 people killed in 19 airstrikes on civilian vessels.
And yet, the USS Gerald R Ford's deployment in the region is a significant escalation in military force, adding to an already unprecedented in modern times build-up of ships, troops, and attack aircraft.
Before the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier moved to the region, around 4,500 sailor and Marines were already operating in the United States Southern Command area, which covers Central and South America, as well as the Caribbean.
As the Ford Carrier Strike Group enters the region, it brings with it an additional 4,000 sailors and an assortment of 'tactical aircraft', which the Navy separately confirmed includes variants of the F/A-18 Super Hornet strike aircraft.
Currently, the main form of air power being deployed by the Department of War in the region are helicopters and AV-8B Harriers, multi-purpose strike aircraft capable of taking off vertically from a standing start and a variety of air-to-ground and air-to-air missions.
The Gerald Ford carrier group will add significantly to the US' sea power in the seas off Venezuela, where a nuclear submarine and eight warships are already stationed. According to Reuters, advanced multi-capability F-35 aircraft are also in the region, something the Department of War has not confirmed.
Almost every country in the region has warned the US against military adventurism, with 58 out of 60 nations signing a declaration against 'the use or threat of use of force and any action not in accordance with international law', which did not name Trump or the US directly.
Brazil's President, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has called on Trump to show restraint, and directly linked the build-up to potential war.
He said: “We are a zone of peace. We don’t need war here. The problem in Venezuela is a political one, and it must be resolved through politics.”
However, despite the lack of any direct reference to Maduro's regime in Venezuela, the move by Trump has triggered concern from America's closest and longest partner in terms of intelligence gathering and sharing - the UK.
Despite the joint function of British and American signals intelligence through hubs like GCHQ, the UK has decided this week to pause sharing some information with its US partners in the wake of the deadly strikes on fishing boats and other vessels.
This was reportedly due to fears that the US' missile attacks on alleged drug traffickers are illegal and in violation of well-established international law.
“It is our longstanding policy to not comment on intelligence matters,” a UK Government spokesperson said in response to the reported rift.