Secretary of State Marco Rubio says the United States is negotiating with Venezuela to secure a military presence in the South American country. The talks come less than a year after the United States carried out a siege on Venezuela.
In an interview with The New York Times, Rubio confirmed [1] that Washington wants to broaden its presence there. He said the United States would like a “presence agreement” allowing American troops to operate “jointly” with Venezuela.
The secretary of state’s disclosure follows questions from The Center Square more than a month earlier about whether the Trump administration planned a military base in South America, including Venezuela. The outlet separately questioned President Donald Trump and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth.
In early October, The Center Square asked Hegseth about military expansion in South America while traveling with him to the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. Hegseth said the United States is expanding its “footprint in Central and South America with partners.”
Hegseth also said that as relationships with countries across Central and South America progress, the United States wants “more burden sharing in Europe.” At the same time, he said the administration wants to focus more closely on the United States and its own backyard.
The Secretary of War discussed ongoing American antinarcotics operations around Central and South America. He also emphasized the Trump administration’s commitment to securing the Western Hemisphere.
“As we do that, a lot of those capabilities are going to move elsewhere, either back home to the big, beautiful base that we’re going to build…or to a different posture in the Western Hemisphere as we can get after these designated terrorist organizations. We are at war with the drug cartels, with DTOs,” Hegseth told The Center Square.
Hegseth said Trump has been clear about confronting drug cartels and designated terrorist organizations. He said the United States would adjust its posture and bases as necessary to keep pressure on those groups in the hemisphere.
The potential shift comes as the Trump administration has sought to dominate power in the Western Hemisphere. That approach has been called the Donroe Doctrine, a play on the Monroe Doctrine built around Trump’s regional agenda.
Before questioning Hegseth, The Center Square asked Trump whether he planned to build a military base in South America, including Venezuela. There currently are no American military bases in the region.
Trump appeared to keep the possibility on the table. “We’re looking at doing a lot of things. We’re getting along very well, as you know.”
“And Venezuela has been a great situation,” Trump told The Center Square. “We’re taking a lot of oil, and we have a great relationship.”
Trump said Venezuela and the United States were both making money. He also said the United States would begin filling its national strategic reserves with Venezuelan oil for very little money.
Over the past year, Central and South America have experienced a major political shift as nations moved away from Marxist aligned leadership and toward free market candidates. A group of candidates backed by Trump also won elections across the continent, further strengthening his regional standing.
The possible changes follow an American agreement to build two bases in Greenland. They also come after the siege and arrest of Venezuela’s former dictator, Nicolas Maduro, which created an opportunity for the United States to build relations and take charge of one of the world’s oil markets.
Until the arrest of Maduro and his wife at the start of the year, Venezuela had built relationships with China, Russia, and Iran. Those countries as some of America’s greatest adversaries and said their ties with Venezuela placed them at the United States’ back door.
Venezuela hosted military drills in 2022 with countries including Russia, China, and Iran. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has targeted narco terrorists around the Caribbean and South America for more than a year.
The administration has already confirmed a drawdown of American troops in parts of Western Europe, specifically Germany. It has also floated the possibility of moving additional troops out of Italy and Spain as Washington considers a different military posture.