US President Donald Trump wrote in a social media post, “To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers, please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY.”
He has indicated that the airspace over Venezuela should be regarded as closed.
Legally, the US does not possess the right to close the airspace of another nation but Trump’s statement may create travel uncertainties and discourage airlines from flying there.
The US has been enhancing its military presence in the Caribbean which officials assert is aimed at tackling drug trafficking.
Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro has refuted US accusations of drug smuggling, claiming they are in an effort to destabilise his government. Venezuela has yet to react to Trump’s statements.
The United States has positioned the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald Ford, along with approximately 15,000 troops, within reach of Venezuela.
The US has claimed that this deployment – the largest in the area since its incursion into Panama in 1989 – is intended to tackle drug trafficking.
On Thursday, Trump cautioned that efforts by the US to stop Venezuelan drug trafficking “by land” would commence “very soon”.
US forces have executed at least 21 attacks on vessels that they alleged were transporting drugs, resulting in the deaths of over 80 individuals. Nonetheless, the US has not offered proof that these boats were indeed carrying drugs.