US President Donald Trump has confirmed a report he authorised the CIA to conduct covert operations inside Venezuela, provoking outrage from the South American nation’s leader.<\/p>\n
US forces have already conducted at least five strikes on suspected drug-carrying boats in the Caribbean in recent weeks, killing 27 people. UN-appointed human rights experts have described the raids as “extrajudicial executions”.<\/p>\n
Speaking at the White House, Trump said the US “is looking at land” as it considers further strikes on drug cartels in the region.<\/p>\n
Nicol\u00e1s Maduro, whose legitimacy as Venezuela’s president is internationally contested after disputed elections last year, appealed on TV for peace with the US.<\/p>\n
He addressed the “people of the United States”, saying “no war, yes peace”.<\/p>\n
The increased US military presence in the region has raised fears in Caracas of a possible attack. There are reportedly about 10,000 US forces built up in the Caribbean, either on ships or in Puerto Rico, a US territory.<\/p>\n
According to the New York Times, Trump’s authorisation would allow the CIA to carry out operations in Venezuela unilaterally or as part of any wider US military activity.<\/p>\n
It remains unknown whether the CIA is planning operations in Venezuela, or whether those plans are being kept as contingencies, but the spy agency has a long history of activities in South America.<\/p>\n
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday alongside FBI Director Kash Patel and Attorney General Pam Bondi, Trump was questioned about the New York Times report.<\/p>\n
“Why did you authorise the CIA to go into Venezuela?” a journalist asked.<\/p>\n
“I authorised for two reasons really,” Trump said in a highly unusual acknowledgement from a US commander-in-chief about an intelligence organisation whose activities are typically shrouded in secrecy.<\/p>\n
“Number one, they [Venezuela] have emptied their prisons into the United States of America.”<\/p>\n
He added: “And the other thing are drugs. We have a lot of drugs coming in from Venezuela, and a lot of the Venezuelan drugs come in through the sea, so you get to see that, but we’re going to stop them by land also.”<\/p>\n
Venezuela plays a relatively minor role in the region’s drug trade. The president would not be drawn on whether the CIA’s goal was to topple Maduro, for whom the US has offered a $50m (\u00a337m) bounty.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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