Washington. U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced Friday that the U.S. military is deploying an aircraft carrier to waters off South America, in its latest military escalation in the region.

According to the Pentagon, the deployed aircraft carrier is the USS Gerald Ford, the Navy's newest and considered the largest in the world, and will be accompanied by three destroyers.

"In support of the President's directive to dismantle Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs) and counter narco-terrorism in defense of the Homeland, the Secretary of War has deployed the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group and the carrier's embarked air wing to the U.S. Southern Command (USSOUTHCOM) area of responsibility (AOR). The increased presence of U.S. forces in the U.S. Southern Command (USSOUTHCOM) area of responsibility will strengthen America's ability to detect, monitor, and dismantle illicit actors and activities that compromise the security and prosperity of the U.S. homeland and our security in the Western Hemisphere. These forces will strengthen and expand existing capabilities to disrupt narcotics trafficking and reduce and dismantle transnational organizations," Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said via X.

Deploying an aircraft carrier is a major decision for the White House and often involves larger military operations, Politico reported.

The decision comes as Washington expands its military operations in the Caribbean and increases pressure on the government of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

The military carried out its tenth attack on a suspected drug vessel, Hegseth said earlier, blaming the Tren de Aragua gang for operating the vessel and leaving six people dead in international waters in the Caribbean.

In a social media post, Hegseth said the attack occurred overnight and marks the second time the Trump administration has linked one of its operations to the gang that originated in a Venezuelan prison.

The pace of attacks has accelerated in recent days, going from one every few weeks at first to three this week, with a total of at least 43 dead since September.

Two of the most recent attacks took place in the eastern Pacific Ocean, expanding the area where the military has launched attacks and moving toward where much of the world's largest cocaine producers are smuggled.

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— Sean Parnell (@SeanParnellASW) October 24, 2025