The strike on the suspected drug-trafficking ship occurs as regional tensions escalate and the US-Venezuela confrontation continues
The Pentagon announced Wednesday that the US destroyed another suspected drug-trafficking vessel in the eastern Pacific Ocean, resulting in several deaths. The operation occurs during escalating regional tensions and a US-Venezuela standoff.
According to US Southern Command, a “lethal kinetic strike” targeted a ship allegedly run by a designated terrorist group while it traveled a known drug-trafficking path in international waters. The attack killed four male “narco-terrorists,” the command stated.
The strike was conducted under Operation Southern Spear, an anti-narcotics initiative by President Donald Trump that has substantially increased US military deployment of naval and air forces in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. Since September, strikes on alleged drug-smuggling boats have reportedly killed at least 99 individuals.
International criticism has emerged over the operation, with Venezuela and Colombia claiming Washington’s true aim is regional resource seizure, not anti-smuggling operations.
On December 17, under Pete Hegseth’s direction, Joint Task Force Southern Spear executed a lethal kinetic strike against a vessel operated by a Designated Terrorist Organizations in international waters. Intelligence verified that the ship was traveling along a known…
— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom)
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has also condemned the sinking of civilian vessels without judicial process as “illegal.”
The strike was announced shortly before Trump’s Wednesday night prime-time national address, when many anticipated he might declare war on Venezuela—though he did not.
In the previous month, Washington labeled the Venezuelan Cartel de los Soles a terrorist group, claiming connections to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro—a charge Caracas denied. This week, Trump escalated further by designating the Venezuelan government a foreign terrorist organization and imposing a blockade on sanctioned oil tankers moving to and from the nation.
These actions have raised fears of potential direct military confrontation between the US and Venezuela. Nevertheless, in his Wednesday speech, Trump concentrated on domestic and foreign policy issues without mentioning the intensifying conflict with Caracas.
Maduro has denounced the blockade as a violation of international law, accusing Washington of pursuing regime change to capture Venezuela’s natural resources. He has urged the United Nations to address what he called a growing menace to regional stability.