Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro ordered the mobilization of 4.5 million troops in response to the US deploying several warships to the South Caribbean Sea. 

On Monday, Reuters reported that three US guided missile destroyers, spy planes, and an attack submarine were deployed near Venezuela. President Donald Trump recently authorized military actions against Latin American cartels, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio claimed Maduro was the leader of Cartel de los Soles. 

There are questions about whether the Cartel de los Soles is an actual organization or an invention of the State Department. 

Maduro responded with a mass mobilization of forces. “This week I will activate a special plan to guarantee coverage with more than 4.5 million militia members throughout the national territory, militias trained, activated, and armed,” he said. “We defend our seas, our skies, and our lands. We liberated them. We guard and patrol them. No empire will touch the sacred soil of Venezuela, nor should it touch the sacred soil of South America.” 

On Tuesday, House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt explained that Trump has not ruled out using military force in Venezuela. “President Trump has been very clear and consistent. He’s prepared to use every element of American power to stop drugs from flooding into our country and to bring those responsible to justice,” she said. 

Trump backed a coup against Maduro during his first administration. The White House provided recognition and financial support to Juan Guaido after he declared himself to be the President of Venezuela. Guaido’s revolution never gained momentum, and he fled the country. 

During the Joe Biden administration, Washington dropped support for Gaudio. However, after Maduro won reelection last year, the White House claimed he rigged the election. The US currently claims Edmundo González Urrutia should be the leader in Caracas.