The United States has deployed the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest warship, to Latin America, marking a significant escalation in its military presence in the region. This move is part of the Trump administration’s campaign to counter narcotics traffickers and narco-terrorism, with the warship’s deployment intended to enhance US capabilities to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit networks. The USS Gerald R. Ford, which can carry up to 90 aircraft, including fighter jets like the F-18 Super Hornet and the E-2 Hawkeye, is accompanied by Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Mahan, USS Winston S. Churchill, and USS Bainbridge.
This deployment is seen as a show of force, particularly amidst heightened tensions with Venezuela, whose government the US has long accused of harboring drug traffickers and undermining democratic institutions. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has warned that if the US intervenes in the country, the working class would rise and a general insurrectional strike would be declared. The US has already carried out 10 strikes against alleged drug vessels, mostly in the Caribbean, killing about 40 people. The deployment of the USS Gerald R. Ford is likely to further escalate tensions between the US and Venezuela.
