Tag: Airspace

US President Donald Trump has intensified Washington’s confrontation with Venezuela by announcing that the airspace around the country should now be treated as fully restricted. In a message he directed at “all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers,” he warned on Saturday that the airspace above and near Venezuela is “closed in its entirety.” Venezuelan officials have not yet issued a reaction. The declaration follows months of expanded US operations targeting what Washington describes as Venezuela-linked drug networks. American forces have carried out several deadly strikes on vessels accused of transporting narcotics, leaving many people dead. UN experts have condemned the attacks as extrajudicial killings. The fallout even led the United Kingdom to freeze intelligence cooperation with the US, with British officials saying they did not want to be involved in actions they believe fall outside the limits of their intelligence-sharing agreement. Trump also signaled on Thursday that the US might soon begin pursuing suspected Venezuelan drug traffickers on land. President Nicolas Maduro dismissed the warnings, insisting the country would not be bullied. Analysts say the pattern of US actions suggests more than a drug-control mission, arguing it could be part of a broader attempt to weaken or remove Maduro’s government. Trump has maintained a long-running campaign against the Venezuelan leader. In August, his administration increased the bounty for information leading to Maduro’s arrest, describing him as “one of the largest narco-traffickers in the world.” The reward, previously $25 million, has been raised to $50 million.