THIS is the bizarre moment Nicolas Maduro swung a sword in the air and vowed to defy the United States.
The was seen in camouflage fatigues and whipping out the blade before crowds in Caracas.
Nicolas Maduro brandished Simón Bolívar’s ‘Sword of Peru’ at a Caracas rallyCredit: Getty
The tyrant declared ‘Failure is not an option!’ and vowed to defend VenezuelaCredit: Getty
He addressed crowds in Caracas saying ‘The nation demands our greatest effort’Credit: AP
Brandishing the weapon – identified by officials as Simón Bolívar’s historic “Sword of Peru” – Maduro barked: “We must be ready to defend every inch of this blessed land from imperialist threat or aggression, no matter where it comes from.”
The desperate despot then declared: “Failure is not an option!”
Even as warships close in and nuclear bombers circle, Maduro is trying to project strength, with a sword in hand, railing against “imperial aggression”, and hinting he may even talk to Trump.
He told the chanting crowds in Caracas: “The nation demands our greatest effort and sacrifice.”
Just days ago, he made a .
Madcap Maduro’s latest surreal show comes after President Donald Trump formally branded his inner circle “narco-terrorists”.
The US last week designated , accusing Maduro of heading a state-embedded criminal empire that has corrupted the military, intelligence agencies, the courts and parliament.
Experts say the Cartel de los Soles is not a traditional cartel but a vast patronage web inside the Venezuelan state.
From generals to intelligence chiefs, they tax, protect and transport cocaine using military aircraft, diplomatic channels and state institutions.
The designation took effect Monday, marking the first time Washington has treated Maduro’s regime not merely as authoritarian – but as a hemispheric security threat.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the cartel had fuelled “terrorist violence throughout our hemisphere” and trafficked cocaine into the US and Europe.
He added: “Neither Maduro nor his cronies represent Venezuela’s legitimate government.”
Maduro is clinging to a disputed third term after being declared winner of last year’s election despite evidence the opposition defeated him by a two-to-one margin.
America’s ‘new options’
Meanwhile, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, heading to the Dominican Republic – a key ally cooperating in anti-drug ops – said the terror label opens vast new military authorities.
“Well, it brings a whole bunch of new options to the United States,” he told One America News Network.
He added it gives “more tools to our department to give options to the president to ultimately say our hemisphere will not be controlled by narco-terrorists.”
Hegseth previously warned that nothing, including strikes inside Venezuela, is off the table.
He slammed Maduro as an “illegitimate leader” with a $50 million bounty on his head and ties to transnational gangs including Tren de Aragua and Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel.
It comes after the US designated Venezuela’s Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organisationCredit: Getty
The USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier, pictured earlier this year, has entered the Caribbean Sea on SundayCredit: AP
An MH-6 Little Bird helicopter, piloted by members of the U.S. Army’s 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR)Credit: Getty Images – Getty
Maduro’s government staged an anti-US march in Caracas after the terror designation.
Supporter Candido Miquilarena, 63, raged that Washington was inventing scenarios “like the scenario they invented with (Saddam) Hussein, with (Muammar) Gaddafi, to destroy these people, these countries.”
Cuba, Venezuela’s communist ally, also accused the US of seeking violent regime change.
Foreign minister Bruno Rodriguez warned any attempt to oust Maduro would be “extremely dangerous and irresponsible”, pleading: “We appeal to the people of the United States to stop this madness.”
Trump's war on drugs
By Harvey Geh, Foreign News Reporter
DONALD Trump has launched his full-scale war on drugs – favouring missiles over law enforcement.
The first day of Trump’s second term kicked off with the designation of narcotraffickers as terrorists – giving him the right to kill them before they can reach American shores.
This is the argument he has used in the face of law experts warning that his decision to strike a suspected drug-smuggling boat on Tuesday was illegal.
Washington-watchers claim that the gangsters should have been arrested – but the White House says that law enforcement is ineffective.
Trump vowed after the blitz: “There’s more where that came from.”
The US President has long spoken of his desire to enact force to take on drug cartels, which he accuses Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro of actively backing.
Maduro has denied the allegations, and the last few months have seen teetering escalations deteriorate into a tense standoff.
The US has positioned naval destroyers and soldiers around Maduro’s waters, while the Venezuelan dictator has ordered mass mobilisation of troops.
Operation Southern Spear
The US military has rolled out a – a flotilla of nearly a dozen Navy ships and around 12,000 troops.
The world’s biggest aircraft carrier,
A B-52 bomber accompanied by KC-135 tankers and fighter jets even staged an “attack demo” near Venezuela after the FAA issued a dramatic NOTAM warning of a “worsening security situation and heightened military activity” around the country.
Major airlines immediately cancelled Venezuela-bound flights.
White House sources say Trump is preparing “fresh operations” within days and is ready to use covert action first.
One official said Don was “not ruling anything out,” adding the president is prepared to use “every element of American power” to choke off the narco-network.
Trump himself hinted at both carrot and stick while flying to Florida for Thanksgiving, saying: “If we can save lives, if we can do things the easy way, that’s fine. And if we have to do it the hard way, then that’s fine too.”
Maduro’s military and officials accused of driving and protecting the cocaine trade through the cartelCredit: AFP
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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