An American warship docked at Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago Sunday as the first wave of what is expected to be a significant ramp up of military assets in the southern Caribbean off the coast of Venezuela in the coming days. The USS Gravely guided missile destroyer and accompanying Marine units will remain on the island through Thursday at least.

A senior military official in Trinidad and Tobago told The Associated Press that the move was only recently scheduled. The prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, has been a vocal supporter of the American military presence and the deadly strikes on suspected drug boats in waters off Venezuela.

The Pentagon also is sending the Navy’s most advanced aircraft carrier to the region in a significant escalation of the Trump administration’s military campaign targeting drug trafficking and pressuring Latin American governments.

The president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, criticized the movement of the carrier as an attempt by the Trump administration to fabricate “a new eternal war” against his country.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth directed the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier strike group, currently in the Mediterranean, to redeploy to the region, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said. The move brings dozens of additional fighter and surveillance aircraft, along with accompanying Navy warships.

The deployment represents the strongest signal yet that President Trump is prepared to conduct military strikes on land targets as part of what his administration describes a bid to destroy drug smuggling operations, according to two Navy officials. The last comparable carrier deployment was in late 2024 to the Red Sea for airstrikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen.

“I don’t think we’re going to necessarily ask for a declaration of war, I think we’re just going to kill people that are bringing drugs into our country. OK? We’re going to kill them. You know? They’re going to be, like, dead,” Mr. Trump said Thursday at a White House event.

Last week, Mr. Trump announced he had authorized the CIA to conduct covert action in Venezuela and said the United States was considering expanding its military campaign to land operations. “We are certainly looking at land now, because we’ve got the sea very well under control,” the president told reporters.

So far, U.S. operations have focused on striking vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean. The administration reports at least 10 boats have been attacked and 43 people killed.

“If you are a narco-terrorist smuggling drugs in our hemisphere, we will treat you like we treat Al-Qaeda. Day or NIGHT, we will map your networks, track your people, hunt you down, and kill you,” Mr. Hegseth wrote on X Friday alongside video of a Caribbean boat strike.

The carrier deployment also signals a strategic pivot away from Europe and the Middle East. For the first time in decades, no carrier will be stationed in either U.S. Central Command — covering the Middle East — or US European Command, potentially affecting negotiations to end conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine.

The Ford, commissioned in 2017, is the largest warship ever deployed by America, with a displacement exceeding 100,000 tons and measuring 1,100 feet long. It carries nearly 4,600 personnel, including its air wing.

The carrier’s primary offensive capability comes from F/A-18 fighter jets capable of carrying air-to-air, air-to-ground, and anti-ship missiles, plus laser-guided bombs, with a maximum combat range of 1,250 miles. The Ford also carries electronic-jamming aircraft, airborne early warning planes, cargo aircraft, and helicopters.

The Ford joins an already substantial buildup – the largest in the Caribbean in decades. On Thursday, B-1 bombers flew near Venezuela days after B-52 bombers conducted an “attack demonstration” near the country. A Defense official said bomber missions are expected to intensify.

Eight warships, F-35B fighters, P-8 Poseidon surveillance planes, AC-130J Ghostriders, MQ-9 Reaper drones, and other weaponry are already in the region. The carrier strike group adds destroyers armed with long-range Tomahawk missiles, along with the Army’s 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment and the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit.

The deployment intensifies pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, whom the Trump administration calls an illegitimate leader running a criminal cartel – charges Mr. Maduro denies. The U.S. offers a $50 million reward for information leading to his arrest.

Venezuela has positioned 5,000 Russian-made anti-aircraft missiles in “key air defense positions,” Mr. Maduro claimed Wednesday during a military event broadcast by Venezolana de Televisión. “Any military force in the world knows the power of the Igla-S and Venezuela has no less than 5,000” of them, he added.

The Russian Igla-S missiles are short-range, low-altitude systems similar to American Stingers, capable of targeting cruise missiles, drones, helicopters, and low-flying planes. Mr. Maduro said the portable missiles had been deployed “even in the last mountain, the last town, and the last city of the territory.”

Mr. Maduro has also been repositioning troops and mobilizing militia members in response to U.S. activity. The people of Venezuela are “clear, united, and aware,” Mr. Maduro said in a speech last week. “They have the means to once again defeat this open conspiracy against the peace and stability of Venezuela.”