Trump weighs strikes targeting cartels inside Venezuela

US President Donald Trump is weighing a multitude of options for carrying out military strikes against drug cartels operating in Venezuela, including potentially hitting targets inside the country as part of a broader strategy aimed at weakening leader Nicolas Maduro, according to multiple sources briefed on the administration's plans, Report informs via CNN.

Tuesday's deadly strike on an alleged drug boat departing Venezuela was a direct reflection of those options, sources said, and marked a significant escalation in the Trump administration's campaign against drug cartels, many of which it's designated as terrorist groups.

Multiple sources told CNN Tuesday's strike was just the beginning of a much larger effort to rid the region of narcotics trafficking and potentially dislodge Maduro from power.

Asked by a reporter on Friday if he would like to see regime change in Venezuela, Trump said, "We're not talking about that."

"But we are talking about the fact that [Venezuela] had an election, which was a very strange election, to put it mildly," Trump said, referring to last year's presidential race in Venezuela marred by accusations of electoral fraud.

The US has moved substantial military firepower into the Caribbean in recent weeks, a move meant in part to be a signal to Maduro, according to multiple White House officials.

Ships armed with Tomahawk missiles, an attack submarine, a range of aircraft, and more than 4,000 US sailors and Marines are now all positioned near Venezuela. Two White House officials told CNN 10 advanced F-35 fighter jets are also being sent to Puerto Rico, where a Marine unit is currently conducting amphibious landing training exercises.

The administration has taken steps to connect Maduro to its broader anti-drug mission – labeling him as a narco-terrorist with ties to some of those recently-designated cartels – and doubling the bounty for his arrest to $50 million.