The Trump administration has authorized the CIA to take covert action inside Venezuela, including lethal operations, The New York Times reported on Wednesday, as the administration’s push toward regime change heats up.
President Trump later confirmed that he authorized the covert action and said the US was considering attacks on Venezuelan territory. “We are certainly looking at land now, because we’ve got the sea very well under control,” he said.
US officials told the Times that the authority allows the CIA to take action against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro or his government, either unilaterally or in conjunction with the US military. The report said it is not known whether the CIA is currently planning operations inside Venezuela or if the authority will be used for future plans.
The US military has been drawing up plans to launch strikes on Venezuelan territory and potentially capture strategic ports and airfields, actions that would almost certainly lead to a full-blown war. The US military campaign in the region has so far involved a buildup of warships and about 10,000 US troops in the Caribbean and strikes on five boats that the US has claimed, without providing evidence, were running drugs.
While combating drug trafficking is the pretext for the US military operations, US officials have made clear that the real goal is regime change. Officials are hoping that Maduro steps down voluntarily or that someone in his inner circle turns on him due to the $50 million US bounty on his head, and the deluge of leaks and reports about potential US military action is likely part of the pressure.
But it’s unlikely that Maduro, who was targeted by a failed regime change effort during the first Trump administration, will be unseated, and the Trump administration appears determined to keep escalating the pressure on him. Maduro has made clear he’s willing to reach a deal with the US and has cooperated on US deportation flights, but it hasn’t stopped the US pressure on him.
The Times report noted that the policy toward Venezuela is being driven by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who also serves as Trump’s national security advisor, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe. Other officials who preferred diplomacy, including US special envoy Ric Grenell, who held direct talks with Maduro, have been pushed aside as Trump has cut off diplomatic efforts with the Venezuelan government.
