President Trump has reportedly suggested that the U.S. place ships along the coast of Venezuela to blockade goods from coming into the fraught nation.
According to five current and former officials, the Pentagon hasn’t taken the suggestions by the president seriously because of its impracticability and because it would divert naval assets away from countering Iran and China, Axios reported.
“He literally just said we should get the ships out there and do a naval embargo,” one official said. “Prevent anything going in.”
“I’m assuming he’s thinking of the Cuban missile crisis,” the official added. “But Cuba is an island and Venezuela is a massive coastline. And Cuba, we knew what we were trying to prevent from getting in. But here what are we talking about? It would need massive, massive amounts of resources; probably more than the U.S. Navy can provide.”
Earlier this year, Nicolás Maduro refused to step aside after winning what the United States and many other countries said was a sham election. Venezuelan National Assembly President Juan Guaidó led thousands of Venezuelans in protest of the regime, but the strongman has managed to cling to power with support from countries such as Russia and Cuba. The U.S. and other nations have declared Guaidó the legitimate president of Venezuela and have pledged to support him.
