CARACAS: Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said he had deployed 25,000 troops along the Caribbean coast and the border with Colombia amid soaring tensions with US President Donald Trump.
In a message Sunday night on social media Maduro said he had deployed “25,000 men and women from our glorious National Bolivarian Armed Forces” to the frontier with Colombia and the northeast coast, where the country’s biggest oil refineries are situated.
The deployment aimed to ensure “the defense of national sovereignty, the security of the country and the fight for peace,” he added.
He did not expressly refer to Trump, who has cited the need to combat Venezuelan drug traffickers particularly in ordering the biggest naval buildup in the Caribbean in years.
Last week US forces blew up a suspected drug boat with 11 people aboard in the Caribbean.
Trump said the boat belonged to the Venezuelan crime gang Tren de Aragua but provided scant proof of the claim.
The US leader has also threatened to shoot down Venezuelan military jets if they endanger US forces after two Venezuelan planes flew near a US Navy vessel in international waters.
Venezuela’s armed forces run to around 123,000 members, according to military sources.
Maduro claims a further 220,000 people have enlisted in a civilian militia.
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Maduro deploys 25,000 troops to Venezuela borders
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Maduro deploys 25,000 troops to Venezuela borders
- The move comes amid soaring tensions with US President Donald Trump
- Troops were deployed to the northeast coast, home to Venezuela’s biggest oil refineries
Trump praises new Honduras leader after talks in US
- Nasry Asfura was sworn in last week after winning November elections with Donald Trump’s backing
- US president threatened to cut aid to Honduras if his ‘friend’ was defeated
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Saturday praised Honduran counterpart Nasry Asfura, whom he endorsed on the campaign trail, following a meeting at his Mar-a-Lago resort.
Asfura, a conservative businessman and former mayor of Honduran capital Tegucigalpa, was sworn in last week after winning November elections with Trump’s backing.
Trump had threatened to cut aid to Central America’s poorest country if his “friend” was defeated.
“I had a very important meeting with my friend, and the President of Honduras, Nasry ‘Tito’ Asfura,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“Once I gave him my strong Endorsement, he won his Election! Tito and I share many of the same America First Values. We have a close partnership on Security.”
He said the pair discussed investment and trade between the two nations.
Asfura is set to speak to media about the talks Sunday.
The Honduran presidency released a photo of the two leaders smiling and giving a thumbs up.
Asfura already met with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on January 12, after which the two countries announced plans for a free trade deal.
His win gave Trump another ally in Latin America after conservatives campaigning heavily on crime and corruption replaced leftists in Chile, Bolivia, Peru and Argentina.
Trump has been pressuring countries in Washington’s backyard to choose between close ties with Washington or Beijing.
Asfura, who succeeded left-wing leader Xiomara Castro, has said he is considering switching diplomatic ties from China to the self-ruled island of Taiwan.
On the eve of the Honduran election, Trump in a surprise move pardoned former president Juan Orlando Hernandez, from Asfura’s party, who was serving a 45-year prison sentence in the US for drug trafficking.
Hernandez was convicted of helping to smuggle 400 tonnes of cocaine into the United States.
Trump’s decision to pardon him, even as US forces were blowing up alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and tightening the noose on Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro, whom Washington accuses of drug trafficking, drew heavy criticism.
Asfura, a conservative businessman and former mayor of Honduran capital Tegucigalpa, was sworn in last week after winning November elections with Trump’s backing.
Trump had threatened to cut aid to Central America’s poorest country if his “friend” was defeated.
“I had a very important meeting with my friend, and the President of Honduras, Nasry ‘Tito’ Asfura,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“Once I gave him my strong Endorsement, he won his Election! Tito and I share many of the same America First Values. We have a close partnership on Security.”
He said the pair discussed investment and trade between the two nations.
Asfura is set to speak to media about the talks Sunday.
The Honduran presidency released a photo of the two leaders smiling and giving a thumbs up.
Asfura already met with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on January 12, after which the two countries announced plans for a free trade deal.
His win gave Trump another ally in Latin America after conservatives campaigning heavily on crime and corruption replaced leftists in Chile, Bolivia, Peru and Argentina.
Trump has been pressuring countries in Washington’s backyard to choose between close ties with Washington or Beijing.
Asfura, who succeeded left-wing leader Xiomara Castro, has said he is considering switching diplomatic ties from China to the self-ruled island of Taiwan.
On the eve of the Honduran election, Trump in a surprise move pardoned former president Juan Orlando Hernandez, from Asfura’s party, who was serving a 45-year prison sentence in the US for drug trafficking.
Hernandez was convicted of helping to smuggle 400 tonnes of cocaine into the United States.
Trump’s decision to pardon him, even as US forces were blowing up alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and tightening the noose on Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro, whom Washington accuses of drug trafficking, drew heavy criticism.
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