Venezuela’s President Gives Message to Donald Trump, All Americans

Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro has doubled down on calls for peace as U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly mulls over options for military operations inside the country and places an enormous amount of firepower close to Venezuela's coast.

Why It Matters

At least 80 people have been killed in U.S. strikes on 20 alleged drug boats in the southern Caribbean and eastern Pacific since early September. Trump and other top officials have said these vessels were carrying drugs bound for the U.S.

Many observers and former officials see the campaign—which has garnered heavy criticism as potentially breaching international law and jeopardizing the U.S.' international standing—as intended to pressurize Maduro and force the authoritarian Venezuelan leader to flee Caracas. U.S. authorities have offered a $50-million reward for information leading to Maduro's arrest. He faces narcoterrorism and other drug-related charges in the U.S.

The strikes have come hand-in-hand with a massive U.S. military buildup near Venezuela.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro addresses civilians taking an oath to join a state-organized defense network in the Petare neighborhood of Caracas...Read More | AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos

What To Know

Maduro told a CNN reporter he wished for peace across South America and for "no more endless wars, no more unjust wars," when probed on Thursday on what he would like to convey to the American people during a rally in the country's capital.

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"No more Libya, no more Afghanistan," Maduro said.

Maduro has repeatedly appealed for peace, including in English, while insisting the South American country is willing and able to respond to a U.S. attack.

The U.S.' largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, arrived in waters close to Venezuela on Tuesday with additional warships and thousands of extra personnel in tow.

Officials briefed Trump on a handful of different options for military operations inside Venezuela this week, CNN reported on Saturday, citing four anonymous sources. The president told reporters onboard Air Force One on Friday he had "sort of made up my mind" about potential military action in the country, but offered up no further details.

Trump said last month he had authorized the CIA to carry out covert operation in Venezuela, but to greenlight strikes on land in the country would be a significant step up in Washington's involvement. It is generally thought the White House would stop well short of an invasion of Venezuela, which would jar with Trump's America First agenda and recall unpleasant memories of U.S. intervention in Panama and Afghanistan.

The Senate failed earlier this month to impose checks on the administration after lawmakers on both sides of the aisle petitioned for more information on the rationale behind the strikes on alleged narco boats.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday officially unveiled Operation Southern Spear, which he said was crafted to protect the U.S. and take out "narcoterrorists from our hemisphere." The U.S. Southern Command separately said on Thursday four people were killed in a U.S. strike on a boat in the Caribbean on Monday.

What People Are Saying

When asked about a sentiment he hoped to convey to President Donald Trump, Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro responded: "My message is: yes, peace. Yes, peace."

What Happens Next

Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López ordered the mobilization of 200,000 soldiers across the country on Tuesday against the "threat" posed by the U.S.