The United States' most advanced aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, arrived in the Caribbean Sea on Sunday in a massive display of military force. The carrier, which includes squadrons of fighter jets and guided-missile destroyers, constitutes the largest U.S. military deployment in the region 'in generations.' The operation, dubbed 'Operation Southern Lance' by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, involves a total of 12,000 troops and nearly a dozen Navy ships. Experts consulted by the AP point out that an aircraft carrier 'is not well-suited to fight the cartels,' but it is an 'effective instrument of intimidation against Maduro.' Secretary of State Marco Rubio has labeled the Venezuelan government a 'transshipment organization' that cooperates with drug traffickers. Maduro, who faces narcoterrorism charges in the U.S., has responded that the U.S. government is 'fabricating' a war against him. The arrival of the vessel raises questions about the Trump administration's objectives for its deployment in Latin America. According to the Argentine News Agency (AN), citing the AP, the Donald Trump administration insists the deployment is an 'anti-drug operation.' However, analysts view the move as a 'tactic of increasing pressure' against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. The U.S. administration has intensified its actions in the region. Since early September, the government has killed at least 80 people in 20 attacks on small boats it accuses of transporting drugs in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific. Although Trump has justified the attacks by stating that the U.S. is in an 'armed conflict' with the cartels and has called the dead 'narcoterrorists,' he has not presented evidence to support his claims. Elizabeth Dickinson, an analyst for the International Crisis Group, warned: 'This is the anchor of what it means to have U.S. military power back in Latin America. (...) I think everyone is watching this with some anticipation to see how willing the United States is to actually use military force.'
