What did Trump want in the Caribbean when the United States deployed warships?

First, the United States deployed several warships to the Caribbean. Donald Trump then announced a fatal strike on the ship he said was carrying drugs.

What Washington plans next is not entirely clear, but some analysts told the BBC that the risk of escalation in the region is growing every day.

Since the U.S. president returned to office in January, the Trump administration has steadily stepped up its anti-drug trafficking efforts in Latin America. As part of this, the United States appears to be centered around Venezuela – an effort that has led to the mobilization of military forces from both countries in recent weeks.

After bombing a small boat in the Caribbean on Tuesday, U.S. officials have made it clear that military operations in the region are not over yet – suggesting more operations that can target drug trafficking.

President Trump released footage of a military strike in the Caribbean on Tuesday, saying that the Venezuelan Tren de Alagua gang killed 11 “Nalcotrians” who he said he was on a small boat.

He said the ship was carrying “a large amount of drugs” and was heading towards the United States. In the Oval Office, Trump accused South American countries of “very bad when it comes to drugs and sending some of the world’s worst criminals into our country.”

The move comes weeks after the United States announced it would receive a reward of $50 million (£37 million) after any information that led to the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro (Nicolás Maduro).

Analysts speaking to the BBC suggest that Trump’s latest move may bear more than one purpose in mind.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Fox News Wednesday morning that U.S. military activity in the region “will not stop…just stop in this strike.”

This clearly attempts to put pressure on Maduro, one commentator said.

According to specialized beginning in 1965, the previous naval stacking was a scale that had never appeared in the region since 1965.

So far, the Pentagon has deployed missile destroyers, IWO JIMA amphibious teams and nuclear-powered submarines, as well as P-8 intelligence aircraft and about 4,500 soldiers in the area.

Professor McPherson said the accumulation “recalled the era of ‘gunboat diplomacy’ more than a century ago.”

The Pentagon said the deployment is designed to help stop drug trafficking and criminals and will help the U.S. stress drug network in the region.

But the U.S. Navy may want to strike more directly against Maduro or encourage internal uprisings in Venezuelan troops, Professor McPherson said.

“Anyway, the Trump administration wants to intimidate the (Venezuelan) regime.”

Stephen Donehoo, a former U.S. military intelligence official who specializes in Latin America, told the BBC that he “never seen such a large naval area in the (US) Southern Command”.

However, Mr. Didu explained that, despite this, it was not a “force to invade abroad.”

“They may have other missions, more precisely, such as “armed drone missions cross Venezuelan airspace.”

Maduro rejected the claim that we were directly involved in drug trafficking, which he believed was a pretend to overthrow the government. He also said he would mobilize the country’s 4.5 million militia members in the way the United States deployed warships.

But analysts say Maduro’s number is overstated – militias are barely trained and are usually only used to raise the numbers of political gatherings and parades, and are therefore not a combat force.

Maduro also vowed that if Venezuela is attacked, Venezuela will immediately “declare a republic.”

U.S. officials have proposed the strike to stop the flow of drugs to the United States – a key mission for Trump’s second term.

Rebecca Bill Chavez, head of the Inter-Washington Dialogue Think Tank, said it was an unusual action.

“If (the US movement) is an anti-drug deployment, it’s different from any anti-drug deployment I’ve seen,” Ms. Chavez, former U.S. Deputy Secretary, told the Western Hemisphere Deputy Secretary, who told the BBC.

U.S. maritime anti-drug operations are often led by the Coast Guard, working with regional partners to intercept suspicious ships.

It is not clear whether the United States will contact other Caribbean officials in advance.

“The risk of escalation at sea is real,” Ms. Chavez said.

The president himself told reporters in the Oval Office that “you see the drug bags on the ship” referring to the videotape, which he said was on strike.

Venezuela is often used as a stop to transport cocaine — but according to a 2023 report, the drug is shipped primarily to the United States through the Pacific Ocean rather than the Caribbean Sea.

So far, officials have not explained how they determined that the person on board on Tuesday was a member of Tren de Aragua, or what drug they thought the ship was transporting.

Military strikes mark the strongest action of the Trump administration on drug trafficking – legal experts say action may have been taken Violation of international human rights and maritime laws.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio defended the action and said the United States may take similar action again in the future.

He said during a visit to Mexico: “What stops them is when you brag (drug trafficker) goes up.

Ms. Chavez said the United States may realize that any military intervention in Venezuela was a “serious mistake”. It will encounter armed resistance in the country and is not welcome at home – which will clash with Trump’s self-proclaimed non-intervention stance.

Christopher Landau appeared to hint at military escalation and reasoning in an August podcast interview with Donald Trump JR.

“I think you will see more actions in the coming days and weeks that will convey a message, but ultimately, the Venezuelan people must rise up and claim their freedom.”

“We can’t change governments around the world on a whim,” Landao said at the time.

Despite the strong stance on drug trafficking, the Trump administration has found ways to work with the Maduro administration.

Caracas has accepted immigration deported from the United States, and the two countries reached a prisoner exchange agreement in July. Washington then allowed U.S. oil company Chevron to resume victory in Venezuela.

The moves have angered some Venezuelans and Cubans living in the United States who had hoped that the president would impose sanctions on the left-wing government of his country.

According to Ms. Chavez, with “these three Aegis destroyers moving south…Chevron’s cargo moving north”, many observers have obtained different signals from the Trump administration.

“People are very confused about the real purpose behind it,” she said.