U.S. President Donald Trump looks on aboard Air Force One during travel to Palm Beach, Florida, from Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, U.S., November 25, 2025.
Anna Rose Layden | Reuters
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that the airspace above and surrounding Venezuela is to be closed in its entirety.
Trump, in a Truth Social post said: “To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers, please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY.”
Last week, the U.S. aviation regulator warned major airlines of a “potentially hazardous situation” when flying over Venezuela due to a “worsening security situation and heightened military activity in or around” the country.
Venezuela revoked operating rights for six major international airlines that had suspended flights to the country following a warning from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration.
The Trump administration has accused Maduro of involvement in drug trafficking, a charge he has denied.
Maduro, in power since 2013, has said that Trump is seeking to oust him and that Venezuelan citizens and the military will resist any such attempt.
U.S. forces in the region have so far focused on counter-narcotic operations, although the assembled firepower far outweighs anything needed for them.
They have carried out at least 21 strikes on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean and Pacific since September, killing at least 83 people.
