Donald Trump has escalated U.S. pressure on Venezuela, declaring Saturday that all airspace over and surrounding the country should be “considered closed in its entirety.” The announcement, made in a post on Truth Social, warned airlines, pilots, and criminal traffickers to avoid the region.

“To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers, please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY,” Trump wrote.

U.S. carriers have not flown to or from Venezuela since 2019, when commercial flights were suspended amid safety and political concerns. However, some international and transit flights continued to cross high-altitude routes over Venezuelan airspace.

The new directive comes alongside recent guidance from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which on Nov. 21 issued a notice urging airlines to avoid flying over Venezuela because of increased military activity and security risks in the region.

Trump’s airspace closure is part of a broader escalation: in remarks just days earlier, he said that land strikes on Venezuela would begin “very soon.” The administration frames the move as an effort “to deter Venezuelan drug traffickers.”

Since early September, the U.S. has carried out a series of naval strikes on vessels alleged to be involved in narcotics smuggling in Caribbean waters; U.S. officials claim the strikes have killed dozens of suspected traffickers.

The government of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro swiftly condemned Trump’s announcement, calling it “a colonialist threat” and a “hostile, unilateral, and arbitrary act” that violates international law and Venezuelan sovereignty.

Venezuela also cited the closure to suspend deportation and migrant-return flights previously coordinated with the U.S. government.

With U.S. military presence mounting in nearby Caribbean waters, and the administration signaling possible land operations, tensions between Washington and Caracas remain extremely high. Analysts warn that further steps — including possible air or ground strikes — may dramatically escalate the conflict.

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr

President Donald Trump committed Friday to granting a “full and complete pardon” to former Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernández, who was sentenced in the U.S. for drug and weapons related offenses.

He also endorsed Tito Asfura for president of Honduras in an announcement shared on Truth Social prior to Honduras’ presidential election Sunday.

Hernández was serving as a two-term president before being extradited to the U.S. in April 2022, according to a statement from the Department of Justice (DOJ).

Court documents alleged Hernández used his position to import more than 400 tons of cocaine into the U.S. with the aid of co-conspirators armed with guns and grenade launchers. In return, he allegedly received millions of dollars in drug money from some of the world’s most violent drug-trafficking organizations, according to court documents cited by the DOJ.

Trump said “many people that I greatly respect” told him Hernández was treated poorly. (Read more from “Trump Promises To Pardon Convicted Drug Trafficker Tied To Infamous Cartel” HERE)