Extract from ABC News
Donald Trump said "Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers" should considered Venezuelan airspace closed. (Reuters: Kevin Lamarque)
In short:
US President Donald Trump has said the entire airspace above the South American nation of Venezuela should be considered closed.
Mr Trump advised airlines from entering the zone, without elaborating.
What's next?
Last week Mr Trump said efforts to halt Venezuelan drug trafficking by land were imminent, ahead of reports the US president may meet his Venezuelan counterpart.
Donald Trump has said the airspace above and surrounding Venezuela is to be closed in its entirety.
"To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers, please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY," the US president said in a post to Truth Social on Saturday.
Mr Trump did not elaborate.
Last week, the US aviation regulator warned major airlines of a "potentially hazardous situation" when flying over Venezuela due to a "worsening security situation and heightened military activity in or around" the country.
That warning prompted six airlines that account for much of the travel in South America to suspend flights to Venezuela.
It comes as the latest escalation in a stand-off between Mr Trump and Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
The Trump administration is piling pressure on Venezuela, with a major military deployment in the Caribbean that includes the world's largest aircraft carrier.
Washington says the aim is to curb drug trafficking, but Caracas insists regime change is the ultimate goal.
US forces have carried out strikes against more than 20 alleged Venezuelan drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean since early September, killing more than 80 people.
Flight Radar showed minimal activity above Venezuela as of 11:45pm AEST on Saturday. (flightradar24.com)
Washington has yet to release evidence that the vessels it targeted were used to smuggle drugs or posed a threat to the United States.
Regional tensions have flared as a result of the campaign and the accompanying military build-up.
The New York Times reported on Friday that Mr Trump and Mr Maduro had spoken by phone last week and discussed a possible meeting in the US.
The report about the call came a day after the US president said efforts to halt Venezuelan drug trafficking by land were imminent, further ratcheting up tensions with Caracas.
Reuters/AFP
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