【By Observer Net, Qi Qian】

According to U.S. media Axios on November 25, President Trump has informed his advisors that he plans to call Venezuelan President Maduro directly.

Several sources said that Trump's latest decision is an important milestone in his "gunboat diplomacy" military action against Venezuela, as it may indicate that the United States will not immediately launch a missile strike or direct land-based military action against Venezuela, despite the U.S. government designating Maduro as a "terrorist organization leader" on local time of the 24th.

An official who is familiar with the discussions said: "No one is planning to kill him or arrest him now, at least not yet. I won't say never, but there is no plan right now."

The official added: "At the same time, we will continue to destroy ships transporting drugs. We want to stop drug trafficking."

Maduro and Trump, photo

The report stated that the news of Trump's intention to directly communicate with Maduro coincided with the U.S. Department of State's decision on the 24th to designate a so-called drug organization in Venezuela as a "foreign terrorist organization". This provides more excuses for the United States to take military action. So far, at least 83 people have died in 21 missile attacks targeting alleged drug-smuggling vessels in the U.S. military operations in the Caribbean.

The report mentioned that on the same day, the military planner behind the U.S. military operation in the Caribbean, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine, visited Puerto Rico. There, the U.S. military stationed up to 10,000 soldiers, sailors, and pilots.

A White House official said: "We have secret operations, but not to kill Maduro. The purpose is to stop drug trafficking." The official also said: "If Maduro leaves, we won't cry."

Another U.S. official told Axios that the date for Trump's conversation with Maduro has not been determined yet and is currently "in the planning stage."

The official said: "No one dares to guess what Trump might say to Maduro. The statement 'all options are on the table' still applies; meanwhile, diplomats said, 'Maduro would say, 'Trust me, I will hold new elections within three years, you can take all the oil, I will stop sending oil to Russia.' But for years, he has said many such things, without fulfilling his promises. Diplomats told us to remain skeptical."

Informed officials said that Maduro wants to continue holding power, which is unacceptable to Trump.

Last week, Trump said that he "might have some discussions with Maduro to see what happens." It was revealed that after that, Trump had decided to call Maduro directly, discussing more about dialogue than bombing.

A Trump advisor said: "I think diplomatic solutions are very likely. Trump hasn't explicitly said so, but he hopes that his legacy will be that he did everything possible to prevent illegal drugs from entering the United States."

The report said that public opinion believes that U.S. Secretary of State Rubio is the main planner of the U.S. actions against Venezuela. However, U.S. government officials said that Rubio only reflected Trump's wishes. An official said: "The hawkish figures on the Venezuela issue are first Trump, then (White House Deputy Chief of Staff) Stephen Miller, and then Rubio."

According to the report, during the first term in 2019, Trump had considered taking military action against Venezuela due to election results. At that time, Rubio dissuaded Trump by citing the lack of sufficient military assets in the region. Informed officials said that now, Rubio and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Caine have jointly planned an operation to "keep options open for the president."

"Gerald R. Ford" has been deployed in the Caribbean, U.S. media photo

Since August this year, the U.S. military has concentrated forces in the Caribbean under the pretext of "cracking down on drug cartels in Latin America", targeting Venezuela.

Venezuela has repeatedly denied the relevant accusations. The Maduro government accused the United States of intending to carry out regime change through military threats in Venezuela and expand militarily in Latin America. Meanwhile, the U.S. side has not yet produced concrete evidence that Maduro is involved in international drug trafficking.

Early November, the New York Times cited several U.S. officials, saying that the Trump administration had developed a series of military action plans against Venezuela, including direct air strikes on military facilities, dispatching special forces to capture or kill President Maduro, and taking actions to control the country's oil fields. The U.S. Department of Justice is drafting legal opinions to try to link Maduro with drug cartels, making him a legitimate target for attack.

It is reported that due to concerns over the failure of operations and casualties, Trump himself has not yet decided how to proceed, or even whether to proceed with these plans. However, his core advisors, Secretary of State Rubio and Homeland Security Advisor Miller, strongly advocated taking action to overthrow the Maduro government.

The report stated that Trump has authorized the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to conduct various actions inside Venezuela, actively undermining the Maduro government through information warfare and uniting anti-Maduro forces, even capturing Maduro himself. However, U.S. security officials said that if such actions could actually overthrow Maduro, he would have already fallen years ago, which is why the White House is considering taking military action.

China previously stated that the U.S. actions threaten regional peace and security, seriously infringe upon the sovereignty, security, and legitimate rights and interests of other countries, and seriously violate international law. China opposes the unilateral use of force and opposes external forces interfering in Venezuela's internal affairs under any pretext.

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Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7576497979813560895/

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