President Donald Trump indicated on Sunday that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s days as the leader of Venezuela are “numbered.”
During a “60 Minutes” interview on CBS News on Sunday, CBS correspondent Norah O’Donnell asked Trump whether the U.S. military operations near Venezuela are intended to stop illegal drug trafficking or whether the military operations are “about getting rid of President Maduro.”
“This is about many things,” Trump said. “This is a country that allowed their prisons to be emptied into our country. To me, that would be almost number one.”
Asked if Maduro’s days as the president of Venezuela are “numbered, Trump told O’Donnell, “I would say yeah. I think so, yeah.”
In a follow-up question, O’Donnell asked Trump if it was true that the U.S. military could potentially execute land strikes against Venezuela.
READ MORE: US military buildup in Caribbean placing pressure on Venezuela: Report
“I’m not saying it’s true or untrue,” Trump stated. “I wouldn’t be inclined to say that I would do that. But – because I don’t talk to a reporter about whether or not I’m gonna strike.”
“You’re a wonderful reporter, you’re very talented, but I’m not gonna tell you what I’m gonna do with Venezuela, if I was gonna do it, or if I wasn’t going to do it,” Trump added.
Asked why he deployed the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier and Carrier Strike Group Twelve to the Caribbean region last week amid the U.S. military buildup near Venezuela, Trump told O’Donnell, “It’s gotta be somewhere. It’s a big one.”
After O’Donnell claimed that the deployment of the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier in the Caribbean region suggests that the U.S. military could be planning to conduct a “larger operation” with regard to Venezuela, Trump said, “Well, we’re not gonna allow countries from– what– you know, it’s countries from all over the world coming in.”
“They come in from all over the world, they’re coming, not just from South America. But Venezuela in particular– has been bad,” the president added. “They have gangs– Tren de Aragua, do you ever hear of it?
Trump’s comments during Sunday’s interview come as reports have circulated in recent weeks suggesting that the U.S. military has been positioning a large number of troops, naval ships, and air assets in the Caribbean region to place pressure on Maduro’s administration in Venezuela.
