U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday confirmed he has authorized covert CIA operations in Venezuela.
The decision would expand U.S. assets deployed to Venezuela, placing added pressure on the regime of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
The development is the latest in a series of events amid growing tensions between the United States and Venezuela, including U.S. tariffs on countries that buy Venezuelan oil and strikes on boats off the waters of Venezuela, which the Trump administration said were trafficking drugs.
The New York Times originally reported on the operations in a report citing unnamed U.S. officials. The administration accused Maduro of leading a narco-state facilitating the flow of drugs into the United States, and has outlined a strategic goal of deposing Maduro, who has denied the accusations against him….