US President Donald Trump has chosen a successor to the resigned commander of the US armed forces Latin America nominated. Trump has appointed General Francis L. Donovan as commander of the United States Southern Command, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced. Donovan is currently the deputy commander of Special Operations Command. However, the Senate still has to approve his appointment.
The previous commander for Latin America, Admiral Alvin Holsey, handed over command to Air Force Maj. Gen. Evan Pettus on Friday. At the farewell ceremony, Holsey said the U.S. must stand alongside “like-minded nations that share our values - democracy, the rule of law and human rights.”
Holsey submitted his resignation in October. Neither he nor Hegseth had given official reasons for this. According to media reports, Holsey had Doubts about the legality of US attacks on alleged drug boats in the Caribbean expressed.
Experts speak of extrajudicial executions
In recent months, the US has positioned several warships and the world’s largest aircraft carrier off the coast of Venezuela and repeatedly attacked boats belonging to alleged drug smugglers in the Caribbean and the Eastern Pacific. More than 100 people have already been killed. Experts classify the attacks as extrajudicial executions and contrary to international law.
The US government accuses Venezuela of actively promoting drug smuggling into the US and thereby endangering the security of the US and its citizens. Venezuela’s left-wing nationalist President Nicolás Maduro, however, suspects plans to overthrow him are behind the US actions. In an interview with NBC News Trump the possibility of war with Venezuela has not been ruled out.
