Venezuela’s Maduro Calls for Dialogue with the US

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has rejected US allegations that he is a drug trafficker and asked President Donald Trump for dialogue, according to a letter released by Caracas on Sunday. The appeal comes amid rising tensions between the two nations.

The letter, addressed to Trump and dated 6 September, was sent days after the United States deployed warships off the Venezuelan coast and carried out the first of several attacks on boats alleged by Washington to be carrying drugs.

That initial strike resulted in 11 fatalities, with two further attacks occurring since, despite Maduro’s plea for peace.

In the missive, Maduro — whose July 2024 reelection was widely viewed by the opposition and much of the international community as fraudulent — rejected US allegations that he leads a drug cartel, describing them as “absolutely false”.

“It is the worst fake news that has been launched against our country in an escalation in an armed conflict that would do catastrophic damage to the whole continent,” the letter states.

Maduro urged Trump to”Keep the peace with dialogue and understanding in the entire hemisphere.”

Since the letter’s dispatch, US forces in the Caribbean have attacked two more vessels alleged to be carrying drugs:

1. One off the coast of Venezuela
2. One further north, near the Dominican Republic

The second strike was first announced on Friday by Trump, without specifying the location, and was later confirmed by the Dominican Republic’s drug enforcement agency and the US embassy. This attack resulted in three deaths.

The United States’ military presence has sparked widespread concern in Latin America, raising fears that it may be preparing for a larger offensive against Venezuela.

The deployment includes:

• Eight warships and a nuclear-powered submarine off the southern Caribbean coast of Venezuela
• Ten fighter jets stationed in nearby Puerto Rico

The operations have also prompted debate over legality, as drug trafficking is not a capital offence under US law, and the US has been destroying vessels rather than seizing them and arresting their crews, which is the standard procedure in anti-drug operations.

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