U.S. Navy Cruiser Escorts Special Operations Ship Off Venezuela
As the Trump administration ramps up pressure on the regime of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro, open-source marine traffic watchers have been closely following the movements of a shadowy special operations ship in the Caribbean.
The vessel was once known as the Cragside, a utilitarian freight ferry built for the EU market, and was converted for use by U.S. Military Sealift Command in the mid-2010s. With the addition of a large helideck, accommodations, boat launch davits and security gear, the ordinary-looking merchant ship was transformed into a forward sea base for use by U.S. special forces. Renamed Ocean Trader, it never transmits an AIS signal, wears a plain white livery, and bears no name or flag state on the stern. Last month the vessel was spotted navigating off St. Kitts by open-source researcher MT Anderson, adding to evidence of an increasing special forces presence in the region. Pentagon sources later confirmed the vessel's presence to Task & Purpose.
On October 4, high-resolution satellite imaging from ESA captured a Ticonderoga-class cruiser, likely USS Lake Erie, operating alongside Ocean Trader off the coast of Trinidad and Tobago. Just a few nautical miles apart, it appears as though the Lake Erie was tasked with providing protection for Ocean Trader's operations. The cruiser is a high-end asset for long range air defense missions.
"This was not a fleeting rendezvous. The sustained, synchronized presence of a high-power Aegis cruiser . . . and the special ops mothership, just ~126 kilometers from the Venezuelan coast, indicates a dedicated operational window for covert activity and/or intelligence gathering," commented MT Anderson.
Recently, a group of four of the small MH-6 helicopters preferred by special operations raiders were also spotted off Trinidad and Tobago, courtesy of multiple open-source monitoring accounts. At its closest point, Trinidad is less than 10 nautical miles from Venezuelan shores. U.S. Navy P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft - a sophisticated surveillance platform - have also been reported in the area.
On the ground in Venezuela, Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López has warned that the nation's troops have to be prepared to counter an American attack. Evidence of mobilization is filtering through on social media, like the deployment of mobile air defense systems and preparation of concrete hedgehogs for closing down roads.
While it is unknown whether the confrontation will escalate, U.S. forces have already destroyed four suspected smuggling boats departing Venezuela since the start of the military buildup. The White House recently notified Congress that it is engaged in "noninternational armed conflict" with "unlawful combatants" in the Caribbean, alleging that "narcoterrorists" pose a national security threat.
"This really looks, walks and talks like a regime change preparation," former National Security Council Senior Director Juan S. Gonzalez told CNN Wednesday.