Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said he would constitutionally declare a "republic in arms" if US forces deployed to Caribbean attacked the South American country. The Venezuelan leader made the comments at a press conference on Monday after the Trump administration moved to boost its maritime defences, expanding deployments in the waters off Venezuela, in a bid to combat threats from Latin American drug cartels. Washington has not signalled any planned land incursion by the thousands of personnel being deployed, yet Maduro's government has responded by deploying over 15,000 troops along its coasts and border with neighbouring Colombia, as well as by urging Venezuelans to enlist in a civilian militia. "In the face of this maximum military pressure, we have declared maximum preparedness for the defence of Venezuela," Maduro said explaining the deployment, to an escalation he described as "extravagant, unjustifiable, immoral and absolutely criminal and bloody threat." In an attempt to rally Venezuelans to his support, Maduro noted that this is the gravest threat to face the continent in the last 100 years "in the form of eight military ships with 1,200 missiles and a submarine" targeting his country. The US Navy now has two Aegis-guided missile destroyers in the Caribbean patrolling the waters near Latin America, the USS Gravely and USS Jason Dunham, as well as the USS Sampson destroyer and USS Lake Erie cruiser. Three amphibious assault ships, encompassing a force of more than 4,000 sailors and Marines, would be entering the region this week, according to a US defence official who spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity. The deployment comes as US President Donald Trump continues to push for the use of the military to thwart cartels he blames for the flow of fentanyl and other illicit drugs into US communities and for perpetuating violence in some cities. Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yván Gil, citing a UN report, told his counterparts in various Latin American countries that the deployment of US forces is built on a "false narrative" as 87% of cocaine produced in Colombia departs through the Pacific. Gil added that traffickers only move around 5% of their product through Venezuela, slamming the Trump administration's narrative which he says "threatens the entire region" noting that an attack on Venezuela would have catastrophic consequences for regional stability. "Let us immediately demand an end to this deployment, which has no other reason than to threaten a sovereign people," he said during a virtual meeting of members of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States regional group. Maduro also reiterated that he was the legitimate winner of the country's latest presidential elections, which were held in late July last year. The elections were however marred with controversy and filled with irregularities, prompting multiple countries, including the US, to not recognise Maduro as the Venezuelan president. Since the elections, the country's opposition have been urging the US and other countries to ramp up pressure on Maduro to force his exit and restore the democratic integrity of the country. Opposition leader María Corina Machado thanked Trump for his deployment last week, claiming that it is "the right approach" towards the Venezuelan government, which she slammed as a "criminal enterprise". Maduro, who accused Trump of pursuing a regime change, warned his US counterpart that military action against his country would "stain (Trump's hands) with blood." — Euronews
