Regional concerns grow over Trump’s ‘Spear of the South’ as Venezuela braces for potential U.S. intervention

Just hours after U.S. President Donald Trump signed legislation ending the nation’s longest government shutdown on Friday, November 14, 2025, his Secretary of War, Peter Hegseth, announced via Twitter a new military initiative dubbed **“Spear of the South”**, targeting “narco-terrorists in the Western Hemisphere.” Two days later, on Sunday, November 16, the Trump administration escalated its stance by designating a Venezuelan criminal group as a terrorist organization and labeling President Nicolás Maduro as “the head of that cartel. Returning to the White House on Sunday after a weekend at Mar-a-Lago, with Washington still engulfed in the fallout from the Epstein files, Trump’s move is being interpreted across the region as a significant escalation that could pave the way for military action against Venezuela. Rising tensions in recent weeks have prompted regional leaders to speak out. At a meeting in Bogotá, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva urged fellow leaders to confront ongoing U.S. attacks on Caribbean vessels. Meanwhile, Colombian President Gustavo Petro described Trump as a leader “intent on intimidation” and denounced the U.S. military build-up as “an unmistakable act of aggression against Latin America.