Washington [US], October 7: US President Donald Trump is said to have ended efforts to reach a diplomatic agreement with Venezuela, and asked US Special Envoy Richard Grenell to stop all contact with the Caracas government.
According to The New York Times on October 7, citing US officials, Special Envoy Richard Grenell has been negotiating with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro for months. Mr. Grenell is said to be trying to reach an agreement to avoid a larger conflict and pave the way for US businesses to access Venezuela 's oil resources .
However, the contacts have become more tense as the US military has stepped up attacks on vessels accused of drug trafficking, and the White House 's decision to end diplomatic efforts is seen as a signal that Washington could expand military operations against Venezuela.
Venezuela has not commented on the above information.
On October 3, the US military attacked a ship in international waters near Venezuela, killing four people, according to an announcement by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth . This was the fourth attack by US forces on ships accused of transporting drugs in the Caribbean.
A White House official said Mr Trump was ready to use "every element of US power" to stop the flow of drugs into the country, while sending a direct message to Mr Maduro demanding an end to drug trafficking from Venezuela.
Meanwhile, US President Trump said on October 5 that the US will also begin to consider operations to attack drug trafficking gangs on land. "They are no longer coming in by sea, so now we will have to start searching on land because they will be forced to go by land," Reuters quoted Mr. Trump.
In a letter to Mr. Trump in September, President Maduro denied Venezuela's involvement in drug trafficking and proposed resuming negotiations with Washington through Special Envoy Grenell.
The US is currently increasing its military presence in the Caribbean. In addition to the F-35 aircraft in Puerto Rico, the US has deployed eight warships, a nuclear-powered submarine and about 4,000 troops in the region.
Venezuela warns of plot to attack US Embassy in Caracas
In another development, Venezuela on October 6 warned of a plot to attack the closed US Embassy complex in the capital Caracas, amid rising bilateral tensions over Washington's military deployment in the Caribbean, according to the AP news agency.
Mr. Jorge Rodriguez, President of the National Assembly and head of the Venezuelan delegation to the US, said that through "three different channels", the US side was warned about a "serious threat" from far-right groups that claim to be supporters of President Nicolas Maduro.
"Right-wing extremist groups in the country were preparing and attempting to place lethal explosives at the US Embassy in Caracas," Mr. Rodriguez said.
Mr. Rodriguez said the Venezuelan government had increased protection measures for the U.S. diplomatic complex and notified a European embassy - acting as a focal point - to inform them of the situation.
The US State Department has not commented on the above information.
Although the US embassy in Caracas has been closed since 2019 after Washington severed diplomatic ties with the Maduro government, the facility still has a team of security and maintenance staff. The sprawling embassy complex is now regularly patrolled by Venezuelan police, since it closed more than five years ago.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper
