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By Amira El-Fekki
Middle East News Reporter
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New satellite imagery showed the USS Gerald R. Ford and its Carrier Strike Group in the southern Caribbean, south of Puerto Rico.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the aircraft carrier and its strike group to the Caribbean to support U.S. counter-narcotics operations across the Americas.
"The USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group's deployment represents a critical step in reinforcing our resolve to protect the security of the Western Hemisphere and the safety of the American Homeland," Admiral Alvin Holsey, the commander of the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), said on Sunday.
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Why It Matters
The expanded U.S. military deployment reflects a significant intensification in the fight against illicit drug trafficking, including strikes on suspected smuggling boats in Caribbean waters near Venezuela and in the eastern Pacific, which the Trump administration frames as essential to protecting the U.S. homeland.
The buildup also includes significant airpower, with a surge of U.S. aircraft at Puerto Rico's Roosevelt Roads air station and new air assets operating out of El Salvador, strategic moves believed to be linked to regional counter-drug operations.
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What To Know
The satellite photo captured on Monday and spotted by open-source intelligence analyst M.T. Anderson showed the aircraft carrier and carrier strike group positioned south of Puerto Rico.
The USS Gerald R. Ford appeared just west of the main strike group, which Anderson identified in an X post as including two Arleigh Burke-class destroyers, a USNS Kaiser-class oiler and a fourth combatant ship.
The deployment of two Arleigh Burke-class destroyers with the strike group was confirmed by a SOUTHCOM statement on Sunday, which named USS Bainbridge and USS Mahan, as well as the USS Winston S. Churchill, an integrated air and missile defense destroyer.
The carrier strike group will join forces already in the Caribbean, including the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group and its embarked Marine expeditionary unit, the military said, in support of Operation Southern Spear, which Hegseth unveiled on Thursday. The USS Gerald R. Ford carries more than 4,000 sailors and dozens of tactical aircraft.
Meanwhile, the littoral combat ship USS Wichita has departed Naval Station Mayport to "assume duties at the Southern Border," the U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM) wrote on X on Monday.
SOUTHCOM has carried out strikes on at least 21 alleged drug boats in the southern Caribbean and eastern Pacific since early September, killing at least 83 people, according to the administration's tallies.
Tensions with Venezuela have spiked as President Nicolás Maduro accused the U.S. of using its anti‑drug operation as a pretext for aggression, previously calling Washington's Caribbean military buildup a siege of his country.
The Trump administration is also focusing on Mexico, with the president telling reporters on Monday that he would be willing to launch military strikes inside the country. Earlier this month, media reported that the administration was planning to send U.S. troops and intelligence officers into Mexico to combat drug cartels.
What People Are Saying
Rear Admiral Paul Lanzilotta, the commander of Carrier Strike Group 12, said in a statement on Sunday: "Our nation's leaders have called upon the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group as the most capable, adaptable, and lethal platform in the world to be where it matters, when it matters."
U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Monday: "Would I launch strikes in Mexico to stop drugs? It's OK with me. Whatever we have to do to stop drugs. I looked at Mexico City over the weekend, there's some big problems over there."
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said during a rally in Caracas on November 13, according to CNN: "To unite for the peace of the (Americas). No more endless wars. No more unjust wars. No more Libya. No more Afghanistan. ... Yes, peace. Yes, peace."
What Happens Next
There's uncertainty over Trump's plans for military operations in Latin American countries. He has not ruled out sending troops to Venezuela, while also expressing a willingness to talk with Maduro.
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