Venezuela Rejects U.S. Claims of Land Strike as Tensions Escalate

Caracas/Washington — December 29, 2025

The Venezuelan government has remained silent on recent claims by U.S. President Donald Trump that American forces conducted a strike on a "big facility" inside Venezuela, amid an ongoing U.S. military campaign targeting alleged drug trafficking operations linked to the Maduro regime.

In a radio interview on Friday with WABC in New York, Trump casually stated that U.S. forces had "knocked out" a major facility two nights earlier, describing it as a site "where the ships come from" in reference to vessels allegedly used for narcotics smuggling. "We hit them very hard," Trump said, without providing specifics on the location, the nature of the target, or evidence of the operation.

If confirmed, the action would mark the first known U.S. military strike on Venezuelan soil since the Trump administration launched its counternarcotics offensive in September 2025. That campaign has included dozens of airstrikes on suspected drug-trafficking boats in international waters, resulting in over 100 deaths, as well as the seizure of oil tankers and a naval buildup in the Caribbean region.

U.S. officials have anonymously told media outlets that Trump was referring to a drug-related facility in Venezuela that was destroyed, but the White House, Pentagon, and CIA have declined to comment or provide verification. No independent reports of a major explosion or destruction at a drug production site have emerged from Venezuela.One report noted social media rumors and videos of an explosion in an industrial area near Maracaibo on December 24, but a local chemical company, Primazol, issued a statement attributing it to a warehouse fire and categorically rejecting links to any military action.

The Venezuelan government, led by President Nicolás Maduro, has not issued a direct public response to Trump's latest claim. Caracas has consistently denied any involvement in drug trafficking, accusing the U.S. of using the counternarcotics pretext to pursue regime change and seize control of Venezuela's vast oil reserves—the largest proven in the world.

Maduro has previously described U.S. actions as "imperialist aggression" and "resource imperialism," pointing to Trump's statements about reclaiming Venezuelan oil, land, and assets allegedly "stolen" from the United States. Venezuela has appealed to the United Nations and garnered support from allies including Russia and China, who have condemned the U.S. buildup and blockade measures.

The U.S. campaign has intensified in recent months, including a declared "blockade" on sanctioned oil tankers and threats of further land-based operations. Trump has repeatedly warned that strikes on Venezuelan territory could begin "very soon," framing the effort as essential to stopping narcotics flows into the United States.Critics, including legal experts and some U.S. lawmakers, have raised concerns about the legality of potential land strikes without congressional authorization, describing them as a possible act of war under international law.

As of now, the absence of an official Venezuelan acknowledgment or denunciation of the alleged facility strike leaves the incident unconfirmed and shrouded in uncertainty, further heightening tensions between the two nations. 17GEN4.com