The United States is deploying the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to the area of responsibility of U.S. Southern Command (USSOUTHCOM), which includes the Caribbean Sea, as tensions rise over possible U.S. military action against Venezuela.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell announced the move on Friday in a post to X (formerly Twitter), stating, “In support of the President’s directive to dismantle Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs) and counter narco-terrorism in defense of the Homeland, the Secretary of War has directed the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group and embarked carrier air wing to the U.S. Southern Command Area of Responsibility. The enhanced U.S. force presence in the USSOUTHCOM AOR will bolster U.S. capacity to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit actors and activities that compromise the safety and prosperity of the United States homeland and our security in the Western Hemisphere.”
The strike group—comprising the flagship Gerald R. Ford, several destroyers, and at least one attack submarine, along with a full carrier air wing—will reinforce an already substantial American presence in the Caribbean. As of this week, the U.S. military reportedly maintains a force of more than 10,000 personnel in the region, including a significant number of Marines and special operations units.
The move comes a day after President Donald Trump suggested that Washington could soon conduct strikes on Venezuelan territory, claiming Caracas was complicit in narcotics trafficking into the United States. U.S. bombers have recently flown within 80 kilometers of Venezuela’s coast, reportedly simulating attack runs before turning back.
While the Trump administration continues to link Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s government to the drug trade, both the CIA and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) have previously found little evidence to support that claim. Recent polls in the United States show growing public skepticism over the prospect of a new U.S. military intervention in South America, even as Washington’s buildup in the region intensifies.