Trump Halts Diplomatic Engagements with Venezuela

U.S. President Donald Trump has abandoned efforts to reach a diplomatic agreement with Venezuela and has instructed his special envoy Richard Grenell to cease all communications. This was reported by Reuters, citing an anonymous senior official from the United States.

Trump informed Congress that the U.S. is engaged in a non-international armed conflict against drug cartels. Although reports suggest that Trump is considering strikes within the South American country's territory, a U.S. official stated that the president has not yet decided whether to escalate his military campaign to the next phase.

It is noteworthy that Trump has told American military personnel that their strikes on vessels off Venezuela's coast have stopped the flow of drugs by sea, and now the U.S. should begin to monitor the situation on land. Tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela intensified in January following Trump's return to the White House.

In August, Washington doubled the reward for information leading to the capture of Maduro, raising it to $50 million, accusing him of illegal drug trafficking and ties to criminal organizations, allegations that Maduro denies.