President Donald Trump said Saturday morning that Venezuela’s airspace should be considered “closed” as he considers military action against the South American country.
“To all airlines, pilots, drug traffickers, and human traffickers, please consider completely closing the airspace over and around Venezuela,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
There was no immediate response to the post from Venezuela, which maintains authority over its own airspace. Flight tracking data showed several planes were still in the air Saturday morning.
Many airlines began rerouting flights away from Venezuelan airspace earlier this month, and the US Federal Aviation Administration warned of “increased military activity” in the region.
Venezuela’s civil aviation authority on Wednesday revoked takeoff and landing privileges from six commercial airlines, accusing them of “participating in acts of state terrorism promoted by the U.S. government and unilaterally suspending commercial air operations.”
On Thursday, President Trump said the United States could begin targeting Venezuelan drug traffickers on land “very soon” and expand operations that have so far focused on ships in the Caribbean.
In his Thanksgiving address to U.S. troops around the world, President Trump thanked the Air Force’s 7th Bomb Wing for its efforts to “interdict Venezuelan drug traffickers,” saying, “About 85 percent are interdicted at sea…and we’ll start interdicting them on land.”
“Also, land is easier, but it will start soon,” the president said from his Mar-a-Lago mansion.
The president has increased pressure on Venezuela for months, increasing the U.S. military presence in the region and launching attacks on suspected drug smuggling vessels starting in early September. The military has carried out nearly 20 known attacks on ships suspected of carrying drugs, killing at least 82 people.
The major aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford arrived in the Caribbean last week, completing a U.S. military buildup in the region not seen in decades.
Last week, the United States also designated the Cartel de los Soles, an organization the U.S. government says is run by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, as a foreign terrorist organization.
Mr. Maduro has denied any ties to the drug trade and accused the United States of “manufacturing” a war against him.
Catherine Doyle also contributed.
