• Trump announces plans to combat Venezuelan drug trafficking "by land."
• The US claims to have reduced drug trafficking by 85% at sea.
• Substantial military resources are deployed in the Caribbean region.
• Maduro accuses the US of seeking regime change under the guise of drug enforcement.
• Trump recently spoke with Maduro about a potential meeting in the US.

US President Donald Trump declared that operations targeting Venezuelan drug trafficking "by land" would commence "very soon," marking a significant escalation in tensions with the Maduro regime. The announcement was made during a video call with US troops, in which Trump emphasized recent military efforts, stating, "People aren’t wanting to be delivering by sea, and we’ll be starting to stop them by land" according to Al Jazeera and Le Monde.

Trump's statements followed reports of the US military's extensive campaign in the region, which has included more than 20 strikes on vessels allegedly involved in drug trafficking, resulting in over 80 fatalities, all without evident backing for the claimed connections to drug smuggling. The military has conducted these strikes under a broader anti-drug operation dubbed "Southern Spear," further asserting that "we've almost stopped – it's about 85% stopped by sea" according to South China Morning Post and Le Monde.

In a related development, Trump's outreach to Maduro, which included a phone call discussing a potential meeting in the United States, underscores the complexities of US-Venezuela relations amidst this military buildup. Reports suggest the US deployment aims to curb drug trafficking, while Caracas insists that the real motive is regime change. Maduro responded defiantly to US threats, assuring that Venezuelans are prepared to defend their nation against what he described as foreign aggression, pointing to a lack of global belief in the US's narrative, as cited by Al Jazeera and South China Morning Post.