US Strikes Drug-Smuggling Boat Off Venezuela Coast, Trump Speaks

US President Donald Trump announced that US forces targeted another vessel allegedly carrying illegal drugs off the coast of Venezuela on Saturday evening. The president warned that drug traffickers may now be forced to shift operations over land.

Speaking at Naval Station Norfolk beside the Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier, Trump said, “In recent weeks, the Navy has supported our mission to blow the cartel terrorists the hell out of the water. We did another one last night. Now we just can’t find any.”

He added, “They’re not coming in by sea anymore, so now we’ll have to start looking about the land because they’ll be forced to go by land.”

It remains unclear whether Trump was referring to the strike announced Friday by US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, which killed four people. This incident marks at least the fourth such US naval strike against suspected drug-smuggling vessels near Venezuela in recent weeks.

Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro condemned the US actions, calling them acts of aggression and highlighting Venezuela’s right to defend its sovereignty. “Our people have never and will never be afraid to defend their right to live and be free,” Maduro stated in a video posted on Telegram.

Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil mentioned that Russia expressed full support and solidarity with Caracas after a phone call between Gil and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Maduro also reportedly sent a letter to Pope Leo XIV seeking support to “consolidate peace in Venezuela.”

Meanwhile, Hegseth told Fox News that the US Navy has all necessary authorization to carry out the Caribbean strikes as part of ongoing anti-drug operations.

This series of strikes reflects the growing US focus on intercepting illegal drug shipments from Venezuela, signaling a possible shift in trafficking methods from maritime to land-based routes.