US President Donald Trump will hold an Oval Office meeting on Monday evening to determine "next steps" concerning Venezuela, CNN reported, citing sources.
Attendees expected to meet at 5:00 pm (local time) include Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, along with White House staff members Susie Wiles and Stephen Miller.
An official announcement is pending, with a White House briefing scheduled for later today.
The reported meeting comes after Trump confirmed on Sunday he held a phone call with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro but declined to give details, saying it did not go "well or badly."
Asked whether his recent warning about Venezuelan airspace meant an air strike is imminent, Trump said: "Don't read anything into it."
Trump recently declared Venezuelan airspace would be "completely shut down," prompting Caracas to demand "unconditional respect" for its airspace.
The US has expanded military operations across Latin America in recent months, deploying Marines, warships, fighter jets, bombers, submarines, and drones.
Last week, Trump said the US will "very soon" take action against Venezuelan drug traffickers on land following 21 maritime attacks since September that killed at least 83 people.
'Extrajudicial executions'
Trump's administration has offered no concrete evidence to back up the allegations of drug trafficking behind the campaign, and numerous experts have questioned the legality of the operations.
The head of Venezuela's legislature, Jorge Rodriguez, said he met on Sunday with relatives of Venezuelans killed in the strikes.
When asked about the report about Hegseth's recent order following which military conducted two strike that killed survivors on a bombed boat in the Caribbean, he said: "If a war had been declared and led to such killings, we would be talking about war crimes."
"Given that no war has been declared, what happened... can only be characterised as murder or extrajudicial executions."
The steady US military buildup has seen the world's largest aircraft carrier deployed to Caribbean waters, while American fighter jets and bombers have repeatedly flown off the Venezuelan coast in recent days.
Six airlines have cancelled services to Venezuela, but on Sunday, the airport in Caracas was functioning as usual.
