What military force has the US positioned off Venezuela's coast?

"The US has attacked several Venezuelan boats and deployed its largest military buildup in Latin America in decades. United States President Donald Trump's campaign against narcoterrorists has transformed the Caribbean into a new battlefield. Since August, Washington has deployed thousands of troops, warships and aircraft across the region, and reopened military bases in Puerto Rico and conducted drills, in what analysts describe as the largest US presence in Latin America in decades."

"In September, the US began a series of strikes on Venezuelan boats it claims were trafficking drugs to the US, with the latest attack on Friday killing six people on board. Last week, Trump announced that he had authorised covert CIA operations in Venezuela and that he was even mulling a land attack. However, on Thursday, Trump denied that all this amounts to a declaration of war on Venezuela."

"Well, I don't think we're going to necessarily ask for a declaration of war, he said. I think we're just going to kill people that are bringing drugs into our country. OK? We're going to kill them, Trump said. The US military has carried out at least ten deadly strikes on vessels off Venezuela's coast, and in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean since September 2, marking the most intense American military activity in Latin America since the US invasion of Panama in 1989."

The US launched multiple strikes on Venezuelan and other vessels and has deployed thousands of troops, warships and aircraft across the Caribbean and Pacific since August. Military bases in Puerto Rico were reopened and drills conducted, producing the most intense US presence in Latin America since 1989. At least ten deadly strikes carried out since September 2 have killed at least 43 people according to US statements. Most attacks occurred near Venezuela's coast and in international waters, prompting questions about the legality of the use of force when no imminent threat was present. Trump authorised covert CIA operations and considered a land attack while denying a declaration of war.

Read at www.aljazeera.com