US sends three warships near Venezuela coast as Maduro mobilises militia against threa

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US President Donald Trump is deploying three warships off the coast of Venezuela as part of efforts to curb drug trafficking, a source familiar with the move said Wednesday.

The deployment comes as the Trump administration steps up pressure on Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, doubling its bounty to $50 million earlier this month on drug charges against the leftist strongman.

The three Aegis-class guided missile destroyers are heading to the waters off Venezuela, the US source told AFP on condition of anonymity.

US media reported that Washington was also planning to send 4,000 Marines to the region.

Washington, which does not recognize Maduro's past two election victories, accuses him of leading the Cartel de los Soles ("Cartel of the Suns") cocaine trafficking gang.

The Treasury Department gave the group a special terrorist designation last month, accusing it of supporting the Tren de Aragua and Sinaloa drug cartels, which were labeled foreign terrorist organizations earlier this year.

The White House said on Tuesday that Trump would use "every element" to stop drug trafficking, when asked about the possibility of US boots on the ground in Venezuela.

"President Trump has been very clear and consistent, he's prepared to use every element of American power to stop drugs from flooding into our country and to bring those responsible to justice," Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said.

Leavitt described the Venezuelan government as a "narco-terror cartel."

"And Maduro, it is the view of this administration, is not a legitimate president, he is a fugitive head of this cartel who has been indicted in the United States for trafficking drugs into this country," she added.

Maduro says mobilizing millions of militia

Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro on Monday said he would deploy 4.5 million militia members in response to US "threats," after Washington raised the bounty for his arrest and launched anti-drug operations in the Caribbean.

"This week, I will activate a special plan with more than 4.5 million militiamen to ensure coverage of the entire national territory -- militias that are prepared, activated and armed," Maduro announced on state television.

Official figures say the Venezuelan militia, founded by Maduro's predecessor Hugo Chavez, contains about 5 million people -- though the actual number is believed to be smaller.

Venezuela's total population is around 30 million.

Maduro lambasted "the renewal of extravagant, bizarre, and outlandish threats" from the United States.

The administration of US President Donald Trump earlier this month doubled its bounty to $50 million for the arrest of Maduro, who faces drug trafficking charges.

Washington, which does not recognise Maduro's past two election victories, accuses the Venezuelan of leading a cocaine trafficking gang called Cartel de los Soles. The Trump administration announced sanctions against the group and Maduro's administration last month.

Although he did not mention the recent US actions specifically, Maduro thanked those who expressed their support in the face of what he called "rotten refrain" of threats.

Maduro called on his government's political base to move forward with the formation of peasant and worker militias "in all industries."

"Rifles and missiles for the peasant force! To defend the territory, sovereignty, and peace of Venezuela," declared Maduro.