Venezuela has accused US President Donald Trump of being a “colonial threat” after he said the airspace around the country should be considered closed.
The country's Foreign Ministry called Trump's comments “another extravagant, illegal and unjustified aggression against the Venezuelan people.”
The US does not legally have the power to close another country's airspace, but Trump's online message could lead to travel uncertainty and prevent airlines from operating there.
The United States is increasing its military presence in the Caribbean, which officials say is intended to combat drug smuggling. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has dismissed US drug trafficking accusations as an attempt to topple him.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote: “To all airlines, pilots, drug dealers and human traffickers, please consider the AIR SPACE OVER AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA COMPLETELY CLOSED.”
The White House did not immediately respond to the BBC's request for comment.
Trump's comments came days after the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) warned airlines of “increased military activity in and around Venezuela.”
Venezuela on Wednesday banned six major international airlines – Iberia, TAP Portugal, Gol, Latam, Avianca and Turkish Airlines – from landing there after they failed to meet a 48-hour deadline to resume flights.
The US has stationed the world's largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald Ford, and about 15,000 troops within striking distance of Venezuela.
They insist the deployment of troops – the largest since the US invasion of Panama in 1989 – will be aimed at combating drug trafficking.
On Thursday, Trump warned that U.S. efforts to stop drug trafficking in Venezuela “overland” would begin “very soon.”
US forces carried out at least 21 strikes on drug ships, killing more than 80 people. However, the US did not provide evidence that drugs were transported on the boats.
The Venezuelan government believes the US move is aimed at ousting Maduro, whose re-election last year was denounced by the Venezuelan opposition and many foreign countries as fraudulent.
The US also designated the Cartel de los Soles, or Cartel of the Suns, a group it says is led by Maduro. as a foreign terrorist organization.
Designating an organization as a terrorist group gives U.S. law enforcement and military agencies greater authority to identify and destroy it.
The Venezuelan Foreign Ministry “categorically, firmly and absolutely rejected” the appointment.
Venezuelan Interior and Justice Minister Diosdado Cabello, who is believed to be a senior member of the cartel, has long called it an “invention.”
The US State Department insists that the Cartel de los Soles not only exists, but also “corrupts the army, intelligence, legislative and judicial systems of Venezuela.”
