Venezuela sends 15,000 troops to border as US warships approach

Bloomberg News on Aug 25, 2025

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Venezuela vowed to reinforce security along its border with Colombia as President Donald Trump’s administration sends U.S. warships to the southern Caribbean.

Nicolas Maduro’s regime deployed 15,000 police and military officers to the border states of Zulia and Tachira, Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said Monday at a press conference. The forces will be joined by an unspecified number of boats, aircraft and drones.

“The president has ordered this deployment to guarantee peace,” Cabello said. “If they want to enter through the border, they won’t be able to.”

Three U.S. warships, carrying more than 4,000 sailors and Marines, are set to approach the region to counter drug cartels. Trump has rattled Latin American leaders by reportedly ordering the Defense Department to prepare for potential military operations.

Cabello asked neighboring Colombia to do the same on its side of the border, saying the two countries have “great relations.”

Last week, Maduro dismissed news of the U.S. deployment but nonetheless called on Venezuelans to unite and join militias. State television is now running ads promoting the enlistment drive.