Trump brushes off Venezuela airspace closure questions: ‘Don’t read anything into it’

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump insisted that Venezuela had effectively closed its airspace. When reporters asked whether that signalled something major was about to happen, he told them they were overthinking it. He urged them not to “read anything into it.”

Trump stuck by his view that Venezuela’s airspace is essentially shut and claimed the country was allowing criminals to slip into the United States. He also called Venezuela “not a very friendly country.”

His remarks came after he posted on Truth Social that the airspace around Venezuela should be considered “closed in its entirety.” The commander-in-chief confirmed he had spoken with President Nicolás Maduro by phone amid rising tensions — though he declined to give details of the conversation. 

“I wouldn’t say it went well or badly,” Trump said. “It was a phone call.” He refused to explain whether the call hinted at possible military action.

Donald Trump tells reporters not to overread the Venezuela airspace alert

While travelling aboard Air Force One on Sunday, Trump grew sharply critical of Venezuela when questioned by reporters. He described the country as “not a very friendly country” and accused it of sending criminals, gang members and drug traffickers into the United States.

A day earlier, on Saturday, Trump had issued a warning on Truth Social directed at airlines, pilots, narcotics dealers and human traffickers, telling them to “consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY.” When asked whether that statement portended more serious action, he told reporters not to overthink it. 

Rising military tensions and accusations between Washington and Venezuela

The United States and Venezuela have been in the spotlight for weeks as tensions intensified. The US recently increased its military presence around the Caribbean and carried out more than 20 strikes on vessels it says were carrying narcotics.

Those operations reportedly resulted in over 80 deaths, though Washington has not publicly released evidence. Venezuela’s government responded by accusing the US of using the missions to force out Maduro.

Venezuela condemns Donald Trump airspace warning as illegal aggression

Venezuelan officials denounced Trump’s airspace declaration as a “colonialist threat,” calling it an “extravagant, illegal and unjustified aggression against the Venezuelan people.”

The government said only Venezuela — not the United States — has the right to close its airspace. It also suspended all deportation flights to the country, and revoked the operating rights of several international airlines that had suspended service following a recent aviation-safety warning by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

The US justification for its pressure campaign centers on mounting allegations that Venezuelan authorities, including the government of President Maduro, are tied to drug trafficking that fuels narcotics flow into the United States.