American tourists enjoying luxury Caribbean holidays could become targets for vicious drug cartels if former President Donald Trump follows through with threatened military strikes against Venezuela, security experts have warned.
The Escalating Caribbean Crisis
The Trump administration has declared it will intensify efforts against narco-gangsters following deadly attacks on suspected drug vessels off the Venezuelan coast. Since the initial strikes began in August, dozens of casualties have been reported, with human remains washing up on nearby island beaches.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth publicly announced the ramping up of American defence measures through Operation Southern Spear. In a social media statement, Hegseth declared: "Led by Joint Task Force Southern Spear and @SOUTHCOM, this mission defends our Homeland, removes narco-terrorists from our Hemisphere, and secures our Homeland from the drugs that are killing our people."
Expert Warns of 'Wild Card' Cartel Threat
Retired US Marine Colonel Mark Cancian, who serves as senior advisor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington DC, provided exclusive analysis to The Mirror regarding the potential consequences.
Colonel Cancian revealed that Trump would likely authorise strikes against both cartel operations and headquarters controlled by Nicolás Maduro's regime should military action against Venezuela proceed. The enhanced US naval presence in the region, including the recent deployment of the USS Gerald R Ford, has significantly boosted American firepower capability.
According to Cancian, initial targets would probably include "production facilities, remote airfields, port warehouses, ship building facilities that the cartels use."
Unpredictable Retaliation Risks
While sustained bombardment could potentially collapse the Maduro government, Colonel Cancian emphasised that cartels represent a more decentralised network without clear leadership, making their responses highly unpredictable.
The security expert identified a concerning "wild card" scenario where cartels might retaliate against American civilians, particularly tourists at Caribbean resorts. "The wild card in all of this is the cartels," Cancian stated. "So far the cartels have kept their head down. They've not reacted in pushing boats forward but they haven't taken any action against the United States. That could happen."
Cancian elaborated on the potential threat: "The cartels are not a unified actor and there are elements within the cartels, the cartels are extremely violent. It's not impossible that one of them would strike at the United States, maybe ambushing a military convoy on Puerto Rico, maybe attacking a resort with US citizens in it."
Such an attack would fundamentally alter the nature of the conflict, Cancian warned, making it impossible for the Trump administration to ignore. In this scenario, the US would likely respond with extended air campaigns and potentially ground operations against cartel strongholds.
President Trump has consistently criticised cartels for smuggling deadly opioids, particularly fentanyl, into the United States. These substances have caused tens of thousands of American fatalities in 2024 alone. The controversial potential strikes form part of Trump's broader strategy to confront Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, who stands accused of permitting cartels to operate freely within his country's borders.
