The mobilization is a response to the "imperialist threat" from the United States, says Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López, according to CNN.
Almost 200,000 soldiers
In a written statement, he explains that Venezuela is on high alert as a result of the strained relationship with the United States having deteriorated, The Washington Post reports.
Venezuela's mobilization includes everything from ground combat units to aviation, navy and artillery units, as well as security forces and militia, according to López.
In a television broadcast on state television, he says that "almost 200,000" have been called up.
The statement comes at the same time as Britain - which controls several islands in the area - has stopped sharing intelligence information with the United States about suspected drug smuggling boats in the Caribbean as the country does not want to be involved in US attacks against them, CNN reports, citing sources.
On Tuesday, Colombian President Gustavo Petro also ordered the country's security forces to stop sharing information with the United States as long as the US attacks on boats in the Caribbean continue.
Orders from the Minister of War
The USS Gerald R Ford, along with three other warships, arrived in the region on Tuesday, according to a press release from the US Navy. This comes after US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth ordered the aircraft carrier to be moved from Europe to the Caribbean in October.
According to a spokesman for the US Defense Headquarters, Sean Parnell, the ships will strengthen the US's ability to crack down on drug trafficking and disarm international crime syndicates.
The US has recently carried out several deadly attacks on what Hegseth said are drug-smuggling boats from Venezuela, among other countries. According to the US, Maduro's regime plays a responsible role in the smuggling.
