U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks to military leaders at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, on September 30, 2025.
Andrew Harnik | AFP | Getty Images
U.S. military officials involved in President Donald Trump’s expanding operations in Latin America are being asked to sign non-disclosure agreements, three U.S. officials said. The development raises new questions about Venezuela’s military buildup, which it fears could lead to invasion.
The move is highly unusual at a time when members of the U.S. military are already required to keep national security secrets from the public eye, and at a time when members of Congress have insisted that important aspects of their missions are kept secret.
The officials, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity, did not say how many Pentagon officials had been asked to sign the agreement and did not provide further details about the scope of the NDA.
Although the Pentagon has turned to NDAs from time to time since Pete Hegseth took over as defense secretary in January, there have been no previous reports that the Pentagon has used nondisclosure agreements specific to its activities in Latin America. The Pentagon last week announced the deployment of the Gerald Ford aircraft carrier group to Latin America, escalating a military buildup that far exceeds any requirements for counternarcotics operations, the stated intent of the U.S. mission so far, experts say. Since early September, the U.S. military has carried out at least 13 airstrikes against suspected drug smuggling vessels, mainly in the Caribbean, killing about 57 people. The Pentagon has provided few details about those targeted, but acknowledged they included people from Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador.
The carrier strike group will add about 10,000 troops and massive firepower to a buildup that already includes guided missile destroyers, F-35 fighter jets, nuclear submarines, and about 6,500 troops.
The Pentagon has not explained why such firepower is necessary for counternarcotics.
Since taking control of the Pentagon in January, Mr. Hegseth has taken a series of steps to try to control the flow of information. According to an Oct. 15 memo, he told Pentagon officials they needed to get permission before interacting with members of Congress. He also launched a breach investigation, required Pentagon-based journalists to sign a new press access policy, and disbarred those who did not.
The Department of Defense did not respond to requests for comment.
drug dealing
The Trump administration has directly linked the Venezuelan government and, more recently, the neighboring Colombian government to drug trafficking, an allegation that both governments deny. However, these claims have raised concerns that US forces may be tasked with carrying out attacks in both countries.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, a senior Republican close to Trump, suggested in a television interview Sunday that Trump would soon brief Congress on “potential future military operations against Venezuela and Colombia.”
In August, the U.S. government doubled the reward to $50 million for information leading to Maduro’s arrest, accusing him of ties to drug trafficking and organized crime, which he denies. Tensions between the United States and Venezuela’s neighbor Colombia have also escalated in recent days, with President Trump slamming Colombian President Gustavo Petro as an “illegal drug leader” and a “bad guy,” a term Petro’s government says is offensive. The US government imposed sanctions on Petro on Friday.
Graham said Trump has all the authority necessary to carry out operations in Latin America.
“These military assets are moving forward to deal with a country that’s flooding our country with drugs from Venezuela and Colombia and spilling blood on Americans,” Graham said on CBS News’ “Face the Nation” with Margaret Brennan.
“So I hope Mr. Maduro leaves peacefully, but I don’t think he will stay that long.”
