President of the United States of America Donald Trump has instructed his special envoy Richard Grenell to cease interaction with Venezuela. The US is ready for an escalation of relations with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro over the issue of drug trafficking. This is reported by UNN with reference to the publication New York Times.
Details
On Monday, October 6, officials told the NYT that last Thursday, October 2, during a meeting with top military leadership, Trump called Grenell and ordered him to cease all diplomatic contacts with Venezuela, including negotiations with President Maduro.
Trump was frustrated that Maduro had not agreed to US demands to voluntarily relinquish power, and also that Venezuelan officials continued to insist that they were not involved in drug trafficking.
US officials reported that the Trump administration has prepared several military scenarios for a possible escalation of the conflict, which may include plans to remove Maduro from power.
Marco Rubio, Secretary of State and National Security Advisor, characterized Maduro as an "illegitimate" leader and repeatedly referred to American accusations against him in a drug trafficking case. According to the Secretary of State, Maduro is a "fugitive from American justice." He also added that the US has increased the reward for information that would help apprehend him to $50 million.
A White House representative said that Trump is ready to use "all levers of American power" to stop drugs from entering the US, and clearly warned Maduro about the need to stop drug trafficking from Venezuela.
According to the New York Times, Grenell and a high-ranking Venezuelan official declined to comment.
Recall
In early September, US troops struck a vessel from Venezuela in the Caribbean Sea that was transporting drugs. 11 people died. President Donald Trump said that the vessel was acting on behalf of the drug terrorist organization Tren de Aragua.
Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro proposed direct talks with the administration of US President Donald Trump a few days after the first US strike on a boat from the South American country, which, according to Trump, was carrying drug traffickers.
The White House rejected Nicolas Maduro's offer to negotiate with Donald Trump. This happened after the build-up of US naval capabilities near Venezuela.