President Donald Trump of the United States said on Sunday that there may be direct talks with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro but giving no further details about the possibility.
"We may be having some discussions with Maduro, and we'll see how that turns out," Trump told reporters on Sunday in Florida before getting on a flight back to Washington.
But Trump's suggestion of talks with his Venezuelan counterpart came as the U.S. increases its military presence in the Caribbean by deploying the world's largest aircraft carrier to the region.
And in the same waters, U.S. Marines are putting up five days of drills with Trinidad and Tobago forces, which is denounced by Maduro at a Saturday rally in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas.
During his weekly television show on Monday, Maduro responded to Trump by saying that he was ready to talk face to face with anyone "who wants to talk to Venezuela".
The region has quickly become a geopolitical flashpoint with the Trump administration repeatedly targeting what it calls "drug trafficking boats" alleged to be linked to both Colombia and Venezuela, while sanctioning both countries.
On Sunday, the U.S. military announced it had carried out its another lethal strike since September on a suspected drug boat in international waters in the eastern Pacific.
And even as Trump made potential diplomatic overtures, the U.S. State Department announced it will designate the Venezuelan Cartel de los Soles as a terrorist organization, claiming it's led by Maduro.
Trump suggests diplomatic talks with Maduro
