As the USS Gerald R. Ford streams into the US Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) area of responsibility, bringing with it 4000 US sailors and dozens of tactical aircraft, Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro ordered its military operations be amped up within the coming hours to confront “imperial threats.”

A release from Venezuelan Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez earlier today announced that a higher phase of “Independencia 200” operations- the country’s national defence and mobilisation framework- will be in effect from 4.p.m. until tomorrow.

Independencia 200, activated by President Nicolás Maduro in mid September shortly after the US began its campaign of military boat strikes in the Caribbean, is a plan intended to defend the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity active in strategic points within the country such as the coasts of Falcón, the Zulian Catatumbo, the Andes and the Aureño plain.