Name: Caribbean on edge as Trump escalates U.S.-Venezuela standoff
Uploaded: 2025-12-04T02:49:03.590Z
Duration: 3 min 1 s
Description: As the U.S. continues its military buildup around Venezuela, President Donald Trump has broadened his threat against Latin American countries, warning that any nation that helps send drugs to the US is subject to attack.

As the U.S. continues its military buildup around Venezuela, President Donald Trump has broadened his threat against Latin American countries, warning that any nation that helps send drugs to the US is subject to attack.

Washington

The United States has deployed 15,000 soldiers and at least 11 naval vessels, including its largest aircraft carrier, to the Caribbean region near Venezuela. President Trump has also authorized covert intelligence operations in Venezuela, threatened airstrikes on alleged drug cartels, and warned of closing Venezuelan airspace.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro remains defiant, while public opinion in Caracas is divided over the prospect of U.S. intervention. Despite limited domestic support for military action, the U.S. continues to escalate its presence and rhetoric, raising concerns about the potential for conflict in the region.

Caribbean on edge as Trump escalates U.S.-Venezuela standoff

FIGHTER JETS TRANSPORT PLANES Support helicopters, part of the military buildup at a U.S. base in Puerto Rico within striking distance of Venezuela. 15,000 U.S. soldiers are now stationed in the region. There are also at least 11 U.S. naval vessels in the area, including the United States' largest aircraft carrier, which can carry dozens of planes. And Tiny Tobago has agreed to host a U.S. military radar installation. Trump has authorized covert intelligence operations in Venezuela and threatened airstrikes on alleged drug cartels there. Sources say that during a call, he told Venezuela's president to leave the country. On social media, Trump warned that the airspace above and surrounding Venezuela is to be closed in its entirety. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has remained defiant. We want peace, but peace with sovereignty, peace with equality, peace with freedom. We do not want a slave's peace or the peace of colonies. Maduro has ruled Venezuela for 12 years, and the U.S. and dozens of other countries don't accept the results of the last two elections that kept him in power. Opinions in Caracas are mixed. Obviously, we do not agree with violence and an armed invasion, but I think that both sides must reach an agreement and provide a way out for the significant part of the Venezuelan population that is calling for change. Calling for violence cannot be the solution. How long will that last? We will become a protectorate of the United States. We already know the history of U.S. invasions. I'm telling you this as a historian. Actually invading Venezuela would require far more troops than the U.S. has in place and could lead to chaos. But that hasn't stopped Trump from threatening other countries in the region as well. I hear Colombia, the country of Colombia, is making cocaine. They have cocaine manufacturing plants, okay? And then they sell us their cocaine. We appreciate that very much. But yeah, anybody that's doing that and selling it into our country is subject to attack. Trump came to office promising an end to wars in far-off countries, and polls show little support in the U.S. for attacking Venezuela. But Trump keeps escalating his rhetoric and the military build-up in the Caribbean. That could make it harder to find an off-ramp from a conflict few people seem to want.

Venezuela holds the world’s largest proven oil reserves, more than five times more than the United States.

Caracas

Maduro accuses U.S. of pushing for change to obtain Venezuela’s oil

Malaysia's transport ministry said that the deep-sea hunt for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 will resume Dec. 30. The plane, which was headed to Beijing, disappeared from radar shortly after taking off from Malaysia's capital on March 8, 2014.

Kuala Lumpur

Search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 set to resume

European Union lawmakers and member states reached a deal to ban all imports of Russian gas before the end of 2027, as the bloc seeks to choke off key funds feeding Moscow's war chest. Aimed at breaking a reliance the bloc has struggled to end despite the invasion of Ukraine, the accord marks a compromise between EU capitals and the European Parliament, which wanted the ban to hit sooner.

Brussels

EU agrees deal to ban Russian gas by end of 2027

President Trump pardoned Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas and his wife on Wednesday. The couple was indicted in 2024 on more than a dozen federal charges. Cuellar has denied any wrongdoing.

Trump pardons Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar and his wife

Sources say the Pentagon watchdog found Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth could have endangered American service members when he shared military information in a Signal group chat in March. Alex Plitsas, a former Pentagon official, joins "The Daily Report" to discuss.

Watchdog found Hegseth jeopardized sensitive military information

Democrats on the House Oversight Committee Wednesday released never-before-seen images of the private island owned by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. CBS News legal reporter Katrina Kaufman has more details.

Never-before-seen images of Jeffrey Epstein's island released

The doctor who pleaded guilty to selling ketamine to Matthew Perry in the weeks before the actor's overdose death has been sentenced to 30 months in prison.

Los Angeles

Doctor who sold Matthew Perry ketamine sentenced to 30 months in prison

Google subsidiary YouTube has criticized an Australian law banning social media accounts for under-16s, arguing the legislation set to start Dec 10 makes young users of Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube less safe.

Canberra

YouTube attacks Australia's underage social media ban

U.S. envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff met Putin in the Kremlin on a revised Ukraine peace plan but left without a deal. Russia insists on territorial gains, army cuts, and blocking NATO membership, while Zelenskyy calls for long-term deterrence against future aggression.

Moscow

Ukraine Invasion

U.S. envoys Kushner, Witkoff leave Kremlin without Ukraine deal

U.S. President Donald Trump, in a televised cabinet meeting, said “I don't want them in our country” about Somali immigrants, sparking outrage from politicians and migration experts. His remarks coincided with reports of planned federal raids targeting Minneapolis’ Somali community.

Trump targets Somali immigrants amid reports of Minneapolis raids

A Russian tanker carrying sunflower oil was hit by a drone off the Turkish coast, with no casualties. The attack is part of recent strikes on Russian-flagged vessels targeting Moscow’s oil sector, while Putin warns of possible retaliatory measures.

Russian tanker attacked off Turkey, Putin warns of retaliation

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he had watched the first U.S. strike in September on an alleged drug-smuggling vessel in real time, but did not see survivors in the water or the second lethal strike that he described as being carried out in the "fog of war."

Hegseth says he didn't see survivors before second strike on boat

Republican comfortably beats Democratic challenger after polls showed candidates in a close race in US state.

Tennessee

Trump’s pick Van Epps wins special election in deep-red Tennessee

U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to expand his crackdown on drug trafficking during a cabinet meeting, suggesting he’d order land strikes on Venezuela and attacks on any country transporting illegal drugs into the U.S.

Trump threatens to expand strikes beyond Venezuela

Ahead of a meeting to discuss the U.S. proposal for peace in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed European counter-proposals as 'unacceptable' and said his country was ready for war if Europe wants one.

Putin says Russia is 'ready' if Europe wants war

OpenAI has declared a "code red" as Google threatens to unseat the AI industry's early leader, according to the Wall Street Journal. Technology journalist Jacob Ward joins CBS News to discuss.

California

OpenAI declares 'code red' as Google threatens its AI lead

Russian President Vladimir Putin met U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner in the Kremlin on Tuesday (December 2) for talks on a possible way to end the deadliest European conflict since World War Two.

Putin meets Trump envoys Witkoff, Kushner for Ukraine peace talks

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday that the deadly boat strikes in the region near Venezuela and Colombia have "only just begun." This comes as Republicans and Democrats in Congress question the legality of the military action.

Hegseth defends boat strikes near Venezuela during Cabinet meeting

President Vladimir Putin has hailed what his commanders told him was the full Russian capture of the city of Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine as an important victory after a prolonged campaign, saying it would help Moscow fulfil its wider war aims.

Pokrovsk

Russia claims control of Pokrovsk

Major rescue and recovery efforts are underway across Southeast Asia after a series of severe storms battered the region displacing millions and killing more than 1,100 people.

Nuwara Eliya

Severe storms batter Southeast Asia, displacing millions

Honduras’ presidential race is too close to call, with Nasry Asfura and Salvador Nasralla nearly tied at just under 40% each as technical glitches delay official results.

Tegucigalpa

Asfura, Nasralla in tight battle for Honduras presidency

Airbus must inspect hundreds of its A320 jets for potential quality flaws in the plane's body as a total of 628 aircraft contain panels that may be too thick or too thin due to a manufacturing issue at a supplier.

Blagnac

Airbus to inspect hundreds of A320s for defective panels

U.S. President Trump warns against actions that could ‘interfere with Syria’s evolution’ amid new Israeli incursions and strikes.

Damascus

Syria demands Israel withdraw amid escalating cross-border incursions

The White House confirmed it authorized a second airstrike on an alleged Venezuelan drug boat in September, but denied it ordered everyone on board be killed, which would be considered a war crime.

U.S. authorization of second strike of Venezuelan ship questioned

Monday is World AIDS Day. It has been recognized globally since 1988, but this year, the U.S. government is not commemorating it for the first time.

U.S. not recognizing World AIDS Day this year

Operation "Swamp Sweep," a monthslong immigration crackdown centered in New Orleans, is set to begin Monday. CBS News national reporter Kati Weis has the details.

New Orleans

Immigration enforcement operation set to begin in New Orleans

Luigi Mangione, the man charged with murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, was in a New York City courtroom on Monday for a pre-trial hearing focused on what evidence the jury will see. CBS News' Anna Schecter has the details.

New York

Luigi Mangione's lawyers seek to toss evidence in state murder case

West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey said Monday that Andrew Wolfe, the second National Guardsman shot in Washington, D.C., last week, has woken up from an induced coma.

National Guardsman injured in shooting has woken up from coma

Lawmakers are questioning the massive mobilization in the Caribbean as President Trump announced airlines and pilots should consider "the airspace above and surrounding Venezuela to be closed in its entirety." It comes amid new controversy over the strikes on suspected Venezuelan drug boats that has some lawmakers raising questions over whether the Pentagon committed a war crime.

Pentagon 'may have' committed war crime amid questions over drug boats

Steve Witkoff, one of President Trump's key envoys helping negotiate a peace proposal between Russia and Ukraine, is set to meet with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, the Kremlin says. CBS News' Ramy Inocencio reports.

Breakdown