President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that the United States will “very soon” extend its military campaign against alleged Venezuelan drug traffickers from the Caribbean Sea onto Venezuelan soil itself. Speaking during a Cabinet meeting, Trump declared that American forces already know the precise locations of targeted individuals and described land-based strikes as “much easier” than maritime operations.

The President’s remarks signal a significant escalation in Washington’s confrontation with Caracas, coming weeks after controversial US air strikes destroyed multiple suspected drug-smuggling vessels, resulting in over 80 fatalities. Trump confirmed that a second follow-up strike had been conducted on September 2 against a vessel that survived an initial attack, emphasising that such actions are necessary to eliminate threats completely.

Defending both himself and War Secretary Pete Hegseth against mounting criticism over civilian casualty concerns, Trump stated that neither he nor Hegseth had prior knowledge of the second strike. He stressed that the decision was made at the operational level by Admiral Frank M. “Mitch” Bradley, commander of US Special Operations Command, under existing rules of engagement.

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Hegseth told the Cabinet that he monitored the first strike in real time before moving to another meeting, only learning of the follow-up attack hours later. Describing the incident as part of the “fog of war,” he noted that the targeted vessel was already engulfed in flames, leaving no visible survivors.

The White House has maintained that all strikes are directed exclusively at individuals and networks engaged in large-scale narcotics trafficking that threaten US national security. Trump’s latest statements indicate that the administration is now prepared to conduct direct kinetic operations inside Venezuelan territory, marking a sharp intensification of its campaign against what it describes as state-tolerated criminal enterprises.

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