US President Donald Trump has said he does not rule out the possibility of a military conflict with Venezuela, signalling a sharp escalation in tensions between Washington and the government of President Nicolás Maduro.
Speaking in a telephone interview with NBC News, Trump was asked directly whether he excluded the prospect of war with Venezuela. “I don’t rule it out, no,” he replied, while stopping short of outlining a clear roadmap for the next phase of US strategy.
Escalation through maritime pressure
Earlier this week, Trump ordered what the administration has described as a “blockade” targeting oil tankers travelling to and from Venezuela that are already under US sanctions, intensifying economic and military pressure on Caracas. US authorities have also recently seized a tanker intercepted near Venezuelan waters.
According to the Trump administration, the campaign has already resulted in 28 attacks on vessels that Washington claims were transporting narcotics from Venezuela in the Caribbean and the Pacific. US officials say more than 100 people have been killed in those operations.
One incident in particular, involving a double strike on what US authorities described as a “narco-vessel”, has come under scrutiny by Congress due to its serious legal and ethical implications, according to reporting by Reuters and AP.
“I’m not discussing it”, but not ruling it out
Asked whether these actions could lead to open conflict with Venezuela, Trump initially said he was “not discussing” the possibility. Pressed further, however, he acknowledged that war remained a conceivable outcome and hinted at further tanker seizures.
When questioned about the timing of potential next steps, Trump said: “It depends. If they are foolish enough to sail openly, then they’ll sail straight back into one of our ports.”
The comments underscore the ambiguity surrounding Washington’s intentions, even as military activity in the region increases.
Unclear endgame for Maduro
Trump also declined to clarify whether the ultimate objective of his policy is the removal of Nicolás Maduro from power.
“He knows exactly what I want,” Trump said. “He knows it better than anyone.”
That lack of clarity has added to unease in Latin America, where governments are watching developments with growing concern, amid fears of wider regional destabilisation.
Tension with Trump’s anti-war message
Trump’s refusal to rule out war carries particular political weight, given his repeated efforts to portray himself as a president opposed to foreign military entanglements.
During the 2024 election campaign, Trump frequently criticised what he described as reckless overseas interventions and framed his foreign policy around avoiding new wars. After his election victory, he said he would “not start wars, but end them”.
His latest remarks mark a notable departure from that narrative, according to analysis by AP and other international outlets.
Drugs and oil at the centre of the dispute
The Trump administration argues that its actions are aimed at vessels involved in drug trafficking, accusing the Venezuelan state of using oil revenues to finance what it calls “narco-terrorism”.
Critics, however, warn that the growing scale of military operations and increasingly explicit war rhetoric risk turning a pressure campaign into a major geopolitical confrontation, with unpredictable consequences for the region and for US domestic politics.
As Reuters has noted, the line between sanctions enforcement and armed conflict is becoming increasingly blurred, raising questions about how far Washington is prepared to go.