Nicolás Maduro avoided making any reference to the US attack this Tuesday, despite the song he chose to end his television broadcast this afternoon with representatives of the communes,"Tiburón," the anti-US classic by Rubén Blades. Shortly before, Donald Trump had announced the attack in the Caribbean against a vessel that, he claimed, came from Venezuela and was carrying drugs. The Chavistas have not taken note, at least for the moment, of the destruction of the ship and the death of the"11 terrorists" on board, according to the US president.
Tensions in the Caribbean over the US military deployment have reached unprecedented levels, and Trump has crossed a line with the use of military force against drug trafficking in international waters. In the video released by the Republican president, a boat disappears in flames after being hit by a projectile. The identification of those on the boat was also not released. Now, Caracas accuses Washington of creating the video using artificial intelligence (AI).
Although Venezuela has not officially commented on the attack, Communications Minister Freddy Ñáñez denounced in a message on his Telegram channel that the video released by Trump was created using artificial intelligence."It seems Marco Rubio continues to lie to his president: after leading him into a dead end, he now offers him an AI video (thus proven) as 'proof'. What does Gemini say about this video?" the official wrote, posting the platform's response to the query he submitted to confirm his theory.
Washington has been increasing pressure on Venezuela in recent months, while coordinating with Chavismo itself to deport Venezuelans. Weeks ago, it designated the Venezuelan-born Tren de Aragua gang and drug cartels, including the Los Soles, as terrorist organizations. According to the US, both organizations are led by the Venezuelan president and other high-ranking officials in his government.
Using this argument, he has launched an intense military operation in the Caribbean against drug trafficking. Maduro has also toughened his rhetoric against the United States. He has insisted that the deployment of eight warships and a nuclear submarine in the Caribbean is"the greatest threat the region has experienced in a hundred years," comparable only to the 1962 Cuban missile crisis.
Chavismo claims that the US has fueled a narrative to force a change of government in Venezuela, under false accusations of drug trafficking against its leaders. This Tuesday, the Dominican Republic declared the Cartel of the Suns a terrorist organization.
The Maduro government has cited an increase in drug seizures as proof of its lack of cartel involvement. Last month, it also deployed 15,000 troops to the border with Colombia in a joint plan to combat criminal gangs operating along that corridor.
Maduro reiterated this Tuesday that they intend to attack Venezuela with the deployment of eight warships, missiles, and a nuclear submarine, resorting to"a story that no one believes." "They are coming for Venezuelan oil; they want it for free. That oil does not belong to Maduro, much less to the Americans; it belongs to you, the people of Venezuela," the president said in his televised address. He once again qualified the accusations against Trump and directly accused Secretary of State Marco Rubio of being primarily responsible for the attacks against Venezuela, asserting that"he wants to get President Donald Trump's hands full of blood."
