US president claims attacks on vessels in the Latin American region have stopped 85 percent of drugs trafficked by sea.

The United States will start targeting Venezuelan drug trafficking “by land”, US President Donald Trump has said, in the latest escalation in tension with Caracas, which has accused Washington of planning to topple Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

Trump’s announcement on Thursday follows weeks of US forces deploying to the Latin American region, including an aircraft carrier group, stealth fighter jets and thousands of troops, as Washington’s attacks on so-called drug trafficking vessels have killed dozens of people in international waters.

“You really are the backbone of America’s airpower, and in recent weeks, you’ve been working to deter Venezuelan drug traffickers, of which there are many,” Trump said in a Thanksgiving holiday video address to US forces.

“Of course, there aren’t too many coming in by sea any more,” Trump said. “People aren’t wanting to be delivering by sea, and we’ll be starting to stop them by land also.

“The land is easier, but that’s going to start very soon. We warned them. Stop sending poison to our country.

“But we’re going to take care of that situation. We’re already doing a lot. We’ve almost stopped it. It’s about 85 percent stopped by sea,” the US president added.

The US military has carried out more than 20 strikes on vessels in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean since September, killing at least 83 people. Legal experts and governments in Latin America have branded the campaign of attacks as extrajudicial killings.

Washington has provided no evidence to support its allegations that the vessels attacked were involved in drug trafficking, and regional leaders say the attacks have killed mostly fishermen.

Trump had previously warned of potential military action against sites in Venezuela and has claimed that Maduro and senior members of the Venezuelan government are involved in the drug trade.

Officials in Caracas say the US is using drug trafficking as a pretence to launch military action to topple Maduro and carry out “regime change” in Venezuela.

Speaking on Thursday, Maduro said Venezuelans would not be intimidated, despite weeks of US threats.

“For 17 weeks, foreign and imperialist forces have been continuously threatening to disrupt the peace of the Caribbean Sea, South America, and Venezuela under false and extravagant arguments that no one believes, neither in US public opinion, nor in world public opinion, and even less so in the powerful Venezuelan public opinion,” he said.

“Today, we say that in Venezuela, there is no threat or aggression that frightens our people or takes us by surprise,” Maduro said in his speech broadcast on national television.

“Our people have prepared themselves with imperturbable serenity to defend their homeland, their soil, their seas, their sky, their soul, and their history,” he added.