U.S. Sends Carrier to Caribbean as Tensions Rise. The USS Gerald R. Ford, the most advanced U.S. aircraft carrier, has entered the Caribbean in a show of force near Venezuela. Its arrival is part of a major U.S. military buildup aimed at disrupting drug trafficking operations. Since early September, U.S. strikes on suspected narcotics-smuggling boats have killed at least 80 people in 20 separate attacks. The Trump administration has stated that future actions will expand to block drug routes on land as well as at sea. Operation Southern Spear now includes nearly a dozen Navy ships and roughly 12,000 US sailors and Marines. Trinidad and Tobago has begun week-long training exercises with U.S. forces, prompting criticism from Venezuela. Analysts believe the carrier s presence could pressure Nicolas Maduro, who faces narcoterrorism charges in the U.S. Regional governments and experts are watching closely amid rising concern over how far the U.S. might escalate militarily.