US warships carrying cruise missiles and marines moved toward Venezuela's coastline. Venezuelan authorities framed the deployment as an imperialist, Iraq-style invasion plot and called on patriots to join the Bolivarian militia to repel it. Allies of Donald Trump posted incendiary social-media messages threatening President Maduro and celebrating the heavy naval presence. Cuba accused the United States of seeking to turn the Caribbean Sea into a war zone. Venezuela experts and former US diplomats expressed skepticism that the mobilization presages a Baghdad-style shock-and-awe assault and characterized much of the activity as a show of force. The amphibious ready group totals roughly 4,500 personnel, a number widely seen as insufficient to mount a full-scale invasion of a country with mountains, jungle and multiple urban centers.
As US warships carrying cruise missiles and marines powered towards Venezuela's coastline this week, supporters of the South American country's president, Nicolas Maduro, warned a dastardly imperialist plot for an Iraq-style invasion was afoot. No one will lay their hands on this land! Maduro thundered, calling on patriots to help repel the supposed regime change operation by joining his Bolivarian militia.
Donald Trump's allies posted incendiary social media messages, warning the Venezuelan autocrat the end was nigh. Your days are seriously numbered, Trump's former national security advisor, Michael Flynn, proclaimed, urging Maduro to buy a one-way ticket to Moscow. Another Trump supporter, Congressman Carlos Gimenez, celebrated the largest military presence we have ever had off the coast of Venezuela and told Maduro to accept his time is up!
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