US orders more ships to southern Caribbean, sources say

PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo — The Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Lake Erie (CG 70) sails underway in the East China Sea, Oct. 8, 2019. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Taylor DiMartino via U.S. Defense Visual Information Distribution Service - DVIDS)

By Steve Holland

WASHINGTON  -  The United States has ordered additional ships to the southern Caribbean as part of President Donald Trump's effort to address threats from Latin American drug cartels, two sources briefed on the deployment said on Monday.

The USS Lake Erie, a guided missile cruiser, and the USS Newport News, a nuclear-powered fast attack submarine, will arrive in the region by early next week, said the sources, who asked to remain anonymous.

The sources declined to detail the specific mission of the deployments but have said that recent movements are aimed at addressing threats to U.S. national security from specially designated "narco-terrorist organizations" in the region.

Last week sources told Reuters the United States has ordered an amphibious squadron to the southern Caribbean as part of the same effort.

The USS San Antonio, USS Iwo Jima and USS Fort Lauderdale were to have arrived off the coast of Venezuela as early as Sunday. The ships are carrying 4,500 service members, including 2,200 Marines, the sources said.

Trump has made cracking down on drug cartels a central goal of his administration, part of a wider effort to limit migration and secure the U.S. southern border.

The Trump administration designated Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel and other drug gangs as well as Venezuelan criminal group Tren de Aragua as global terrorist organizations in February, as Trump stepped up immigration enforcement against alleged gang members. 

 (Reporting By Steve Holland; Editing by Chris Reese // REUTERS)