WASHINGTON, September 3. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump believes that Venezuela is taking insufficient measures to combat drug trafficking and to curb the flow of illegal immigrants to the United States.
" Venezuela has been a very bad actor. They've been, as you know, been sending millions of people into our country," Trump said at the beginning of a meeting with Polish President Karol Nawrocki. "Venezuela has been very bad, both in terms of drugs and sending some of the worst criminals anywhere in the world into our country. Venezuela's been one of the worst actors in the whole group, and we have a group of pretty bad actors."
He was commenting on the US’ destruction of a boat on which, according to the US government, a shipment of drugs was being transported in the southern Caribbean. According to preliminary data, the attack killed 11 people.
"We have to protect our country and we're going to do it," Trump said.
He said that the operation would have a deterrent effect on Latin America’s drug cartels.
"Obviously, they won't be doing it again. And I think a lot of other people won't be doing it again. When they watch that tape, they're going to say, ‘Let's not do this’," Trump said.
According to Reuters, on August 19, three destroyers of the US Navy (USS Gravely, USS Jason Dunham and USS Sampson) were sent to the southern Caribbean to the coast of Venezuela to conduct operations against drug cartels.
It was also reported that nuclear submarine USS Newport News, missile cruiser USS Lake Erie, amphibious ships and 4,500 troops were transferred. The New York Times said that Trump had secretly signed a directive to begin using military force against Latin American drug cartels.