In a major military operation that began in September, the US administration continues to put pressure on Venezuela with navy warships massing in the Caribbean Sea.

US president Donald Trump claims the air strikes on boats in the region are not acts of aggression but enforcement operations to prevent alleged drug trafficking.

To date it is estimated that 83 people have been killed but it has not been made clear by the administration the intelligence that led up the attacks proving the boats were indeed carrying drugs.

So is this a “war on drugs” or is it part of a broader plan to oust Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro?

And with Trump now saying the country’s air space should be shut down, is a ground offensive on the horizon?

I speak to professor of Latin American history and migration studies at Vassar College, Daniel Mendiola.

Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey and Andrew McNair. 

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