Q24N (BBC Mundo) The United States announced it will designate Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and other members of his government as terrorists on November 24.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. would designate the ‘Cartel de los Soles ‘ as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. The U.S. Department of Justice accuses Maduro and other leaders of Chavista Venezuela, such as Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, of belonging to this alleged criminal organization.
Washington has long accused them of leading a criminal organization that it claims is responsible for sending illegal drugs to the United States.
Maduro has always vehemently denied the accusations and recently said the U.S. government is “fabricating a war” against Venezuela.
Designating organizations as terrorist groups grants U.S. law enforcement and the military greater powers to target and dismantle them.
The United States has already designated several cartels as terrorist organizations, including Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua and others in Mexico and Ecuador.
In announcing the measure, Rubio said, “Neither Maduro nor his cronies represent the legitimate government of Venezuela.”
The designation announcement marks another step in the pressure campaign that the Trump administration appears to have launched against Chavista Venezuela.
The United States has sent its largest military deployment to the Caribbean in decades and has carried out at least 21 attacks on suspected drug-trafficking vessels, killing at least 83 people, in recent weeks.
It has not provided evidence about who was on board, and lawyers have said the attacks could violate international law.
Speculation is growing about whether the U.S. could attack ground targets inside Venezuela as part of an attempt to exert military pressure on Nicolás Maduro to remove him from power.
Donald Trump has said he has “more or less” made a decision about what to do, but has not yet revealed what it is.