On September 3, 2025, the US government sank a small Venezuelan boat, supposedly loaded with illegal drugs, in the Caribbean sea. All 11 passengers, allegedly members of the narcoterrorist Tren de Aragua, died on the spot.
This action follows a series of moves to weaken the Venezuelan regime. Washington has deployed destroyers, missile-equipped warships, and even a nuclear submarine to within striking distance of Venezuela.
US President Donald Trump quickly publicized the strike, framing it as proof that he will not tolerate narcoterrorism emanating from Venezuela. However, in terms of drug trafficking, the United States has larger concerns than Venezuela.
Mexico, for example, is home to the most powerful cartels in the region and is also the largest fentanyl exporter to the United States. Venezuela, in contrast, is another actor in cocaine logistics—offering ports, clandestine airstrips, and complicit officials to facilitate drug transportation through Caribbean routes.
In 2023, the United Nations affirmed that most maritime cocaine travels through the Pacific, not the Caribbean. If narcotrafficking is the concern, isolating Venezuela looks like a misallocation of resources.
Still, Venezuela has become the prime geopolitical symbol to rally allies in the region and beyond. For years, evidence has mounted that Venezuelan armed forces shelter and profit from criminal networks. The so-called Soles Cartel, allegedly run by officers with suns on their uniforms, gives credence to the libertarian quip that the state is merely another mafia.
This behavior has allowed the White House to reframe the confrontation. By designating Venezuelan networks and gangs such as Tren de Aragua as narcoterrorists, the Trump administration has invoked counterterrorism authorities that justify military strikes.
Beyond drugs, though, Venezuela’s strategic value to Trump lies in at least five factors:
1. Winning Latino voters in the United States.
After his return to the White House, Donald Trump struggled to retain support among Latino voters, particularly after large-scale deportations and the rollback of Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelans. A hard line against Maduro plays well among communities that fled authoritarian regimes, who see in Trump’s posture a validation of their struggles.
By sinking a vessel tied to Venezuelan traffickers, Trump reinforces his image as the alpha president willing to confront dictators, not appease them. In electoral terms, every percentage point among these communities in Florida, Texas, or Arizona can prove decisive.
2. Distracting public opinion from domestic troubles.
Foreign-policy spectacle often doubles as a diversion from problems at home. A strike on Venezuelan traffickers shifts the national conversation away from a variety of concerns at the federal level, such as escalating deficits, ownership of a formerly private company, and wrangling with the courts.
By focusing attention on a seemingly decisive military success close to home, albeit tiny in the grand scheme, Trump curbs criticism and creates an image of strength. For a weary public, the Venezuelan episode becomes a symbolic victory, regardless of its long-term effectiveness against narcotics.
3. Securing more control over Central American ports.
Venezuela’s cocaine exports rarely arrive directly in the United States. Instead, they move through an intricate network of Central American and Caribbean ports, where corruption, weak governance, and criminal complicity open the door to smuggling.
By escalating pressure on Venezuela, Washington also strengthens its hand in negotiating more surveillance and cooperation with transit states like Honduras, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic. These chokepoints are also useful for a revived Monroe Doctrine.
If Trump leverages the Venezuelan threat to expand US influence over ports, intelligence, and naval patrols, he can reshape the logistical map of trafficking in the hemisphere. For Central American governments, compliance is the price of remaining a US ally.
4. Laying the groundwork to identify new escape routes for narcotics.
Moreover, when traffickers are forced to abandon familiar corridors through the Caribbean, they inevitably seek alternative routes through Central America, Africa, or the Pacific. By keeping military and intelligence assets focused on Venezuela and surrounding seas, the US government can monitor how criminal organizations adapt, revealing their facilitators, networks, and political allies.
This creates opportunities for sanctions, extraditions, and diplomatic pressure against other governments that tolerate or benefit from the trade. In practice, Venezuela serves as bait: flush the traffickers from one route; observe where they resurface; take action.
5. Countering China’s military and economic presence.
Venezuela is not just a drug hub but a geopolitical outpost for Beijing. Chinese loans, military hardware, and joint ventures with Maduro’s regime have entrenched Venezuela as a symbol of anti-US alignment in the hemisphere. By striking traffickers linked to the Venezuelan state, Washington signals to Beijing that its allies are vulnerable and costly to maintain. Moreover, Latin American nations can more easily side with the United States against Venezuela than they can confront China directly. Under this narrative, Trump has found a better approach to negotiate and strengthen alliances within the region.
