The U.S. has authorised covert CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) operations in Venezuela, intensifying pressure on President Nicolas Maduro’s government.

The U.S. administration has offered $50 million for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on drug trafficking charges.

New authorisations reportedly allow the CIA to conduct lethal operations in Venezuela and a range of activities across the Caribbean, according to the New York Times.

When asked why he had authorised the CIA to operate in Venezuela, Trump cited two reasons: the migration of Venezuelans to the United States and drug trafficking.

"I authorised for two reasons really," Trump said. "Number one, they have emptied their prisons into the United States of America...they came in through the border. They came in because we had an open border," he told reporters in the Oval Office. "And the other thing are drugs," Trump said.

Trump has not provided evidence for his claim that Venezuela is sending former prisoners to the U.S.

He added that the U.S. had made progress intercepting drug shipments at sea, and that new efforts were now focused on overland routes. "We are looking at land now because we’ve got the sea very well under control," he said.

Copied