Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered an aircraft carrier strike group currently stationed in Europe to the Caribbean region amid a massive buildup of US military forces in the region.
The Gerald R. Ford strike group and its associated air wing are being sent to “dismantle Transnational Criminal Organizations and counter narco-terrorism,” Pentagon Press Secretary Sean Parnell said in a statement posted on X.
The Ford group docked near the harbor of Split, Croatia on October 21. That would leave the ships more than 5,000 miles from the Caribbean, meaning it would take days for the group to be in position to launch any strikes.
The buildup of US forces has raised questions about the Trump administration’s intent in the region. The administration has said repeatedly that the military presence is part of a counter-drug trafficking campaign, but President Donald Trump has also been weighing strikes inside Venezuela itself as part of a broader strategy aimed at weakening leader Nicolas Maduro, CNN has reported.
The Ford, a “first-in-class” carrier, is touted by the Navy as the largest warship ever built in the world.
Hegseth said Friday morning that the US had conducted an overnight strike against a boat he said was operated by a drug cartel and smuggling narcotics in the Caribbean.
The strike, which Hegseth said killed six people, brings the total number known of targeted boats to 10 and the number of people killed to 43 since the US began its campaign last month.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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