U.S. Military Documents Indicate Plans to Keep Troops in Caribbean Through 2028

The United States is formulating plans to feed a massive military presence in the Caribbean almost to the end of President Donald Trump s term in office suggesting the fresh influx of American troops to the region won t end anytime soon As gossip official leaks and RUMINT a portmanteau of rumor and intelligence about a coming war with Venezuela reign in Washington Defense Department contracting documents reviewed by The Intercept offer one of the greater part concrete indications of the Pentagon s plans for operations in the Caribbean Sea over the next three years The contracting documents earmark food supplies for almost every branch of the U S military including the Coast Guard Army Navy Air Force and Marine Corps They detail an effort by the Defense Logistics Agency or DLA to source Fresh Bread Bakery products to Department of Defense DoD or Troop customers in the Puerto Rico Zone One spreadsheet outlining supplies for Puerto Rico Troops notes tens of thousands of pounds of baked goods are scheduled for delivery from November of this year to November Foodstuff set to feed the troops include individually wrapped honey buns vanilla cupcakes sweet rolls hamburger rolls and flour tortillas The procurement s length of time and the level of effort seemed to point to these operations continuing at the current level for several years The Pentagon has built up a force of troops in the Caribbean since the summer the largest naval flotilla in the Caribbean since the Cold War That contingent now includes sailors aboard the USS Gerald R Ford the Navy s newest and the majority powerful aircraft carrier which has more than attack surveillance and advocacy aircraft The surge of combat power comes as the U S has conducted more than strikes on suspected drug smuggling boats in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean killing more than civilians As part of that effort the Trump administration has secretly declared that it is engaged in a non-international armed conflict with cartels gangs and armed groups including C rtel de los Soles which the U S declares is headed by Nicolas Maduro and other high-ranking Venezuelan individuals despite little evidence that such a group exists Experts and insiders see this as part of a plan for regime change in Venezuela that stretches back to Trump s first term Maduro the president of Venezuela denies that he heads a cartel Mark Cancian an analyst with the Center for Strategic and International Studies explained The Intercept that the documents suggest the outsized American military presence in the Caribbean could continue for years The procurement s length of time and the level of effort seemed to point to these operations continuing at the current level for several years revealed Cancian who previously worked on defense procurement at the Office of Management and Budget That s vital because it means that the Navy will maintain a large presence in the Caribbean that is far larger than what it has been in current years It further implies that the Navy will be involved in these counter-drug operations The Pentagon has tried to keep the details of its military buildup in the region under wraps failing to answer questions from The Intercept about troop levels the bulking up of bases and warships being surged into the Caribbean For operational safeguard reasons we do not release itemized operational details of asset unit and troop movements and locations reported a spokesperson for Southern Command which oversees military operations in the region Information disclosed is published via official communication web sites and social media accounts or shared with reporters via news releases and updates Related Secret Boat Strike Memo Justifies Killings By Claiming the Target Is Drugs Not People The Trump administration has deployed at least warships five sponsorship vessels and a nuclear submarine including the Ford which is the largest vessel of its kind to the region since August This ramp-up includes three guided-missile destroyers the USS Jason Dunham the USS Gravely and the USS Stockdale Adm Alvin Holsey the outgoing SOUTHCOM commander in the last few days visited the amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima which has been operating in the Caribbean for months The Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group includes the Iwo Jima amphibious delivery dock ships and the nd Marine Expeditionary Unit or MEU a unit especially skilled in amphibious landings One DLA document lists as recipients of the food an array of U S naval vessels known to be involved in ongoing buildup of troops and vessels including the Iwo Jima Fort Lauderdale San Antonio Jason Dunham Gravely and Stockdale as well as the special operations mothership MV Ocean Trader which makes periodic appearances at hot spots around the world The list also mentions the USS Truxtun a guided missile destroyer not previously broadcasted as part of the Caribbean naval buildup As the troops have flooded into the region the quantities of food and costs listed in the contracting documents have mushroomed The initial contracting documents circulated in August included cost estimates and an estimated deliverable quantity of food linked to three locations in Puerto Rico These were revised in September and October Hanna Homestead of the National Priorities Project who analyzed the documents for The Intercept noted that the final amendment published on October included a cost estimate that increased percent from the original request The amount of food measured in pounds also skyrocketed percent she observed And the number of locations in Puerto Rico jumped from three to Those specific ships will be rotated in the months ahead but they are likely a placeholder for the level of effort Cancian added As these ships leave the assumption is that others will replace them One of the questions we hope the new National Defense Strategy answers is whether this larger Caribbean deployment is long term This food order seems to imply that it is though the regional logistical command may just be preparing for a higher level of demand without being sure whether the new strategy will dictate that Another former defense official who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to his current job with a military contractor stated that the documents raise important questions that the Defense Department would rather not address People will ask whether this means escalation from the strikes on intermediaries into a Venezuelan campaign whatever that eventually looks like mentioned the former official who has considerable experience in military logistics procurement and supply chains Other locations in Puerto Rico named in the DLA documents include Mu iz Air National Guard Base within Luis Mu oz Mar n International Airport Fort Buchanan a U S Army installation near San Juan and Roosevelt Roads naval base The latter a Cold War-era facility previously dormant since is listed as hosting Marines The base roughly miles from Venezuela began receiving Marine Corps aircraft and roughly Marines in early November A September amendment noted the Delivery Schedule will include one additional customer They are as follows DoDAAC M Customer USS Hiroshima The Hiroshima is a fictional warship that exists only in the Star Trek universe But Homestead of the National Priorities Project pointed out that the Defense Activity Address Code M corresponds with the nd MEU according to a Fiscal Year Marine Corps logistics document Troops from the nd MEU are at this moment conducting training exercises in Trinidad and Tobago the Caribbean island nation only miles from Venezuela Maduro called the drills irresponsible and revealed the neighboring country was allowing their waters and land to be used to gravely threaten the peace of the Caribbean Members of the unit have also conducted reconnaissance and surveillance training at Camp Santiago in Puerto Rico For months the nd MEU has failed to respond to The Intercept s questions about its operations in the region The unit also did not respond to current repeated requests for comment about its use of Defense Activity Address Code M and the likely for food deliveries into late for troops in and around Puerto Rico The DLA documents are also no anomaly Other new contracting documents detail food catering services for d MEU personnel located at Jos Aponte de la Torre Airport Puerto Rico from September to December The Defense Logistics Agency is also looking into a separate anticipated six-month contract for full-service food encouragement to visiting U S Navy Ships in Puerto Rico That deal would include foods from beef steak chicken cutlets and lasagna to chocolate pudding brownie mix and chocolate chip cookie dough not to mention breakfast burritos with bacon egg and cheese Last week Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reported that the campaign of attacks in the Caribbean and the Pacific is called Operation Southern Spear Led by Joint Task Force Southern Spear and Southern Command this mission defends our Homeland removes narco-terrorists from our Hemisphere and secures our Homeland from the drugs that are killing our people he wrote on X Southern Spear kicked off earlier this year as part of the Navy s next-generation effort to use small robot interceptor boats and vertical take-off and landing drones to conduct counternarcotics operations Trump in the past few days teased the possibility of holding talks with Maduro Maduro stated he is open to face-to-face talks with Trump The Pentagon has reportedly presented Trump with various options for attacking Venezuela according to two cabinet authorities who spoke to The Intercept on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to disclose information from classified briefings Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson did not reply to a request for comment Related War in Venezuela Brought to You By the Same People Who Lied Us Into Iraq Trump has also publicly spoken of moving the sea attacks to land proven that he secretly authorized the CIA to conduct covert operations in Venezuela threatened future attacks on Venezuelan territory and reported he has not ruled out an invasion of Venezuela by U S troops Appealed if the U S was going to war against Venezuela Trump nonetheless replied I doubt it I don t think so But when inquired if Maduro s days as president were numbered Trump replied I would say yeah I think so White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers did not reply to questions from The Intercept about plans to attack Venezuela the options for strikes presented to Trump and the contracting documents which indicate the U S will have a major troop presence in the Caribbean into late These documents suggest that the Trump administration plans to maintain a significantly increased military presence in the Caribbean through the remainder of President Trump s term in office With ongoing military strikes against alleged drug traffickers in the Caribbean and the Pacific the expected for escalation between the U S and Venezuela in particular is high even if the administration isn t seeking it Gabe Murphy a initiative analyst at Taxpayers for Common Sense a nonpartisan budget watchdog advocating for an end to wasteful spending advised The Intercept The post U S Military Documents Indicate Plans to Keep Troops in Caribbean Through appeared first on The Intercept