The Financial Times, citing informed sources, has reported that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has tightened his security measures following increased U.S. military presence in the Caribbean Sea.
According to the sources, Maduro’s public appearances have decreased in recent weeks, and the events he does attend are held without prior announcement.
The report says that senior officials and military commanders who previously accompanied Maduro now avoid doing so in order to protect their own lives.
The Financial Times writes that Maduro is increasingly relying on Cuban security personnel, as he is concerned about declining loyalty within Venezuelan security forces.
José García, a Venezuelan military expert who has studied the president’s security measures, told the newspaper: “Maduro is implementing classic security protocols that are typically used when an individual is under threat.”
According to the report, Maduro — who faced the heaviest U.S. sanctions pressure during Donald Trump’s first term — views the presence of U.S. warships in the Caribbean as a sign of an effort toward “regime change.”
Nicolás Maduro has repeatedly warned that his country faces “the greatest threat of a U.S. attack in a century.”
The U.S. Navy has so far deployed eight warships, a nuclear submarine, and more than 16,000 personnel to the Caribbean.
Since September 2025, these forces have destroyed at least 20 boats and detained 76 individuals in international waters who were said to have been involved in drug trafficking from Venezuela.
Maduro has previously called for peace and urged the American people to prevent the United States from entering a “long and unjust war” like Afghanistan.
