Trump announced a conversation with Maduro: 'I have something very concrete to tell him'

(Patria) - US President Donald Trump confirmed that he will soon speak with his Venezuelan counterpart Nicolás Maduro, amid speculation that the US could launch an attack on the Latin American country.

- I will speak with him in the not-too-distant future. I can't tell you what I'm going to say, but I have something very concrete to say - Trump stated in an interview with Fox Radio.

He reiterated a long list of alleged grievances against Maduro, including accusations of drug trafficking.

Maduro warned on Monday that any US military intervention in his country would be Trump's "political end".

He said that circles around Trump are "provoking" an armed action which, according to him, would lead the US president "to the cliff".

Maduro believes there is an "effort by powerful sectors in the US to destroy Trump" using Venezuela.

- They want President Trump to make the most serious mistake of his life and to militarily confront Venezuela, which would be the political end of his leadership and name, and he is under pressure and provoked - Maduro added.

This "provocation", he continued, "comes from his opponents and known enemies, but also from people around him who are making calculations about the post-Trump era and it doesn't matter if they harm him."

He stressed that Venezuela is ready for a "face-to-face" dialogue with Washington, reiterating that diplomacy and the search for "common ground" remain the "unchangeable" stance of his government.

Tensions between the US and Venezuela have been rising since Trump ordered a military deployment in the Caribbean in August to target drug cartels and stop drug trafficking routes linked to Maduro.

Caracas claims a regime change is sought. Since then, the US military has carried out a total of 21 attacks on ships it claims were loaded with drugs, killing 83 people, and Trump has signaled that he could attack alleged drug trafficking targets on land in Venezuela.