U.S. President Donald Trump said he does not rule out the possibility of war with Venezuela.
NBC said Trump made the comment in an exclusive phone interview with NBC News on the 19th local time.
The Trump administration has declared war on Venezuelan drug cartels and is steadily pressuring ships passing through the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific. On the 16th, it designated the Nicolás Maduro regime as a foreign terrorist organization and completely blocked the entry and exit of all sanctioned oil tankers going in and out of Venezuela, raising the level of its response.
When asked by NBC whether such pressure could lead to war, Trump at first said, "I will not discuss it." But after NBC pressed for a clear answer, he replied that he would not rule out the possibility, NBC News said.
He also said there would be additional seizures of oil tankers traveling to and from Venezuela.
On whether ousting the Maduro regime is the ultimate goal, he said, "He (President Maduro) knows exactly what I want. He knows it better than anyone."