🔗 Share this article American Military Struck a 'Major Plant' in the Venezuelan nation, Trump Asserted Without Providing Details. Former President Donald Trump has claimed that American military assets struck a "major installation" in the South American country last week. Yet, the ex-leader withheld information about the precise purpose or site of the target, and there has been no additional comment from his team. Unspecific Remarks Made In a Radio Show "We just destroyed – I don't know if you read – they have a big plant, where the vessels originate. Two nights ago, we destroyed it. So we struck them decisively," Trump reportedly told Republican donor and businessman John Catsimatidis in a recent interview. Possible Significance of a Confirmed Strike If a American strike is confirmed, it would mark the first ground target hit since the Pentagon began a expansion of US strike forces in the Caribbean region to interdict drug traffickers that the former administration asserts operate under the orders of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. This initial purpose of the force deployment has since morphed into a quarantine aimed at stopping the nation's oil exports. Online Video and Official Claims Trump has for some time warned that US forces are prepared to expand the operations by striking objectives within Venezuela, a tactic that would theoretically require congressional authorization. Video footage posted online on 24 December purportedly showed an detonation reportedly from an industrial area in a Venezuelan state. Yet, the footage or the site in question has not been corroborated. An official from Trump's team reportedly told a news network that the president was describing a drug facility in his remarks. Response and Current Military Situation The Caracas administration has issued no statement on the incident the former president described. Furthermore, there have been no independent reports from within the country concerning it. The presence of American forces in the region – a posture some have termed a sea blockade – marks the broadest naval operation of his time in office. Administration officials have stopped short from describing the operation as a blockade, but have stated that about 15,000 service members are deployed across the Caribbean and the Gulf, including a aircraft carrier group, advanced fighter jets, and law enforcement vessels to uphold current sanctions.