11 U.S. warships and 15,000 troops now in Caribbean as Venezuela tensions escalate | 30 Nov 2025 | More than 10 U.S. warships, including the country’s largest carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, are bearing down on the Caribbean amid escalating tensions between President Trump and Venezuela. A Marine Expeditionary Unit capable of an amphibious land invasion has also been deployed as part of efforts to stem the flow of drugs into the U.S. from the socialist country. Venezuela’s socialist president, Nicolas Maduro, is being blamed for allowing narco vessels to set off from his country for the U.S. Among the 11 warships currently in the Caribbean is the USS Ford, which houses the Carrier Strike Group featuring nine carrier air wings, or more than 70 aircraft, including squadrons out of Virginia, Florida and Washington state.