"I authorized for two reasons, really, Trump replied. Number one, they have emptied their prisons into the United States of America. The other thing, he continued, was Venezuela's role in drug-trafficking. He then appeared to imply that the US would take actions on foreign soil to prevent the flow of narcotics and other drugs. We have a lot of drugs coming in from Venezuela, Trump said. A lot of the Venezuelan drugs come in through the sea. So you get to see that."
"But the New York Times's reporting suggests Trump has gone a step further, green-lighting the presence of US intelligence officials on Venezuelan soil to carry out lethal missions. Citing anonymous administration officials, the Times says the new authorisation is part of a broader strategy to topple Maduro. Reporters sought to confront Trump with that assertion as well. Does the CIA have authority to take out Maduro? one journalist asked at the White House on Wednesday."
President Donald Trump confirmed authorisation for CIA covert operations in Venezuela, citing prison releases into the United States and Venezuela's role in drug trafficking as reasons. He said many Venezuelan drugs arrive by sea and indicated intent to stop drug flows by land as well. The White House green-lit US intelligence presence on Venezuelan soil to carry out lethal missions as part of a broader strategy to remove President Nicolás Maduro. Both governments have bolstered military forces along the Caribbean Sea amid heightened tensions. Cited anonymous administration officials described the authorisation as escalatory and part of wider US efforts targeting Maduro.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]