by Pablo Meriguet
Nov 27, 2025
Demonstrators marched through central Caracas and demanded an end to military threats against Venezuela. For his part, Trump is keeping the lines of communication open with Caracas while increasing pressure on Chavista leaders.
On November 25, tens of thousands of Venezuelans marched to defend national sovereignty. The event, dubbed the “Great Civic-Military, Police March for our National Flag and the Sword of Bolívar”, brought together various groups of military personnel, police, and civilians who demanded an end to Washington’s pressure on the Caribbean country.
Since August, the Pentagon has deployed its troops in the Caribbean Sea to, according to the Trump administration, stop the entry of drugs which allegedly come out of Venezuela. At the same time, they have declared the Cartel de los Soles an international terrorist organization and identified the Venezuelan government leadership as part of that organization.
However, Caracas has categorically rejected the accusations, which, according to Chavismo, are a crude and false attempt to pave the way for the overthrow of President Nicolás Maduro and establish a puppet government allied with the demands and needs of the United States, which would be after Venezuela’s mineral and oil reserves, the largest in the world.
Tuesday’s demonstration took place in the center of Caracas, the country’s capital, and sought to showcase and strengthen the mass popular defense of Venezuela’s sovereignty in the face of possible US military intervention. “Bolívar is more alive than ever among us, the anti-imperialist Bolívar, the genius Bolívar…” said PSUV secretary and Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello.
For several weeks, Chavismo has been preparing for a possible scenario in which it must face an invasion by the world’s largest military power. To this end, it has carried out coordination exercises between the organized bases of Chavismo, the National Bolivarian Militia, and the army and police.
In this regard, Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino emphasized that Washington’s recent actions are intended to cause fear and intimidate the Venezuelan people: “Bombers, ships, destroyers, submarines, all equipped with guided missiles; fighter planes approaching the coast, trying to intimidate a people.” Despite this, he affirmed that Venezuelan forces are ready to respond to any scenario.
During the mobilization, Maduro told attendees: “Venezuela faces a decisive moment for its existence… There is no excuse for anyone, whether civilian, politician, military, or police, to make excuses. Failure is not an option! Our homeland demands our utmost effort and sacrifice.”
Trump’s ambiguity
For its part, the Trump administration continues to maintain an ambiguous stance on the situation in Venezuela. On the one hand, it has ordered the Cartel de los Soles to be declared a terrorist organization, which, according to Washington’s official line, makes Maduro the leader of a terrorist group.
However, Trump is aware of the enormous political damage that an attack on Venezuela could cause his administration. Perhaps that is why he is not ruling out the possibility of forcing Maduro out through hard diplomacy, namely through the pressure his troops are exerting on Venezuela’s borders in the Caribbean Sea.
On November 25, Trump said: “If we can save lives, if we can do things the nice way, that’s fine… [But] if we have to do it the hard way, that’s fine too.”
Many have seen the upcoming visit to the Dominican Republic by Pete Hegseth, the US Secretary of War, as a new maneuver to strengthen their military positions. Dominican President Luis Abinader, an ally of Washington, reported that the purpose of the visit is to strengthen the joint fight against drug trafficking in the region, which can be interpreted as an alliance in preparation for a war scenario in the Caribbean Sea.
Similarly, the Chief of Staff of the United States, Dan Caine, has been touring the Caribbean. Caine is one of the architects of Operation Southern Spear, the US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) mission launched on November 13, 2025 by US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth to “removes narco-terrorists from our Hemisphere, and secures our Homeland from the drugs that are killing our people.” Presumably, though it is not clarified, the operation is a continuation of the military deployment and pressure campaign that began in August which has seen 15,000 soldiers stationed in the Caribbean and the launching of attacks on dozens of boats, resulting in the extrajudicial killings of over 80 people in international waters who, according to Washington, were carrying drugs in their boats, although several human rights organizations have strongly questioned these claims.
For his part, Albert Ramdin, the Secretary General of the Organization of American States, has called for a halt to a possible attack on Venezuela, despite his critical stance against the Chavista government: “We do not want any war in our hemisphere. Peace is, ultimately, what everyone in this hemisphere wants. No one wins in a war.”
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