André Benoit | The Caribbean deployment is less about cocaine and more about control, reviving America’s oldest imperial playbook | President Donald Trump has hinted that US forces could soon move from sea to land operations in Venezuela, expanding what he called “a war on terrorist drug cartels.” ● Speaking at a Navy anniversary ceremony in Norfolk, Virginia, Trump said American forces had struck another vessel off Venezuela’s coast allegedly carrying narcotics. [...] According to Washington, at least four such strikes have taken place in the Caribbean in recent weeks, leaving more than 20 people dead. Trump also declared members of drug cartels to be “unlawful combatants,” a label he said allows the US to use military force without congressional approval. [...] In September 2025, the United States reinforced that campaign with a major build-up in the Caribbean: eight warships, a nuclear attack submarine, and about 4,500 troops, including 2,200 Marines. The force is backed by F-35 jets stationed in Puerto Rico and a fleet of maritime-surveillance drones. Officially, Washington calls it a counter-narcotics mission. In practice, it is designed to pressure Venezuela – the last Latin-American state still openly defying US power and the unwritten Monroe Doctrine.