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Tensions have grown between Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago over support for US military action in the Caribbean.

Venezuela has declared Trinidad and Tobago’s prime minister a persona non grata, as the two countries continue to feud over United States military activity in the Caribbean Sea.

On Tuesday, Venezuela’s National Assembly voted in favour of the sanction against Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, who has been sparring with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. It designates her as unwelcome in the country and bars her from entering.

Asked a day earlier about the prospect, Persad-Bissessar told the news agency AFP: “Why would they think I would want to go to Venezuela?”

The two countries – separated by a small bay just 11km (7 miles) wide at its narrowest point – have been at loggerheads in recent weeks over the US military activity in the region.

Persad-Bissessar is one of the few Caribbean leaders to applaud the build-up of US military forces in the Caribbean as well as its bombing campaign against alleged drug-trafficking boats.

“I, along with most of the country, am happy that the US naval deployment is having success in their mission,” Persad-Bissessar said shortly after the first missile strike was announced on September 2.

“I have no sympathy for traffickers; the US military should kill them all, violently.”

But that stance has put her at odds with Maduro’s government. Just this week, Venezuelan Minister of Foreign Affairs Yvan Gil Pinto told the United Nations General Assembly that the US strikes were an “illegal and completely immoral military threat hanging over our heads”.

Legal experts have compared the bombing campaign with extrajudicial killings, citing likely violations of international law. At least 13 strikes have occurred so far against 14 maritime vessels, most of them small boats.

An estimated 57 people have been killed in the US attacks. Their identities are unknown, and no definitive evidence has been provided to the public so far to link them to drug trafficking.

Relations frayed over US strikes

Labelling Persad-Bissessar a persona non grata is just the latest chapter in the tit-for-tat between the two countries.

On Tuesday, AFP reported that Trinidad and Tobago was considering a “mass deportation” of undocumented migrants, most of whom are Venezuelans, from its territory.

According to a memorandum reviewed by the news agency, Trinidad and Tobago’s homeland security minister, Roger Alexander, ordered a halt to any planned releases of “illegal immigrants” in detention.

“Consideration is currently being given to the implementation of a mass deportation exercise,” the memo said.

That comes after Maduro ordered the “immediate suspension” of a major gas deal with Trinidad and Tobago on Monday, citing the island nation’s reception of a US warship.

The island is hosting one of several US warships deployed near Venezuelan waters by President Donald Trump. Venezuelan officials have accused the US president of seeking to overturn Maduro’s government.

In cancelling the gas deal, Maduro accused Persad-Bissessar of transforming the Caribbean nation “into an aircraft carrier of the American empire against Venezuela”.

The Pentagon has so far deployed seven warships, a submarine, drones and fighter jets to the Caribbean, as well as another warship to the Gulf of Mexico.

The rate of the US bombing campaign has increased in recent weeks, with six strikes announced over the last week alone.

Its scope has also broadened, with strikes taking place this month in the Eastern Pacific Ocean near Colombia, as well as the Caribbean waters off Venezuela’s shores.

Some observers believe the Trump administration is using the US military to pressure and destabilise Maduro, who was re-elected last year in what the US has dismissed as a fraudulent election.

Persad-Bissessar, however, has been steadfast in her support of the US campaign, saying she would rather see drug traffickers “blown to pieces” than have them contribute to deaths in her country.

UN official Volker Turk drew ire of the Venezuelan government after condemning what he says are abuses by state forces.

Venezuela’s National Assembly has voted to declare United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk persona non grata after he publicly criticised the government’s human rights violations.

The unanimous Tuesday declaration follows comments from Turk last week before the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, condemning what he said were arbitrary detentions and forced disappearances.

In remarks before the declaration, Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez accused Turk of turning a “blind eye” to other rights abuses, such as the deportation of Venezuelan immigrants living in the United States to a detention facility in El Salvador.

However, Turk released a statement expressing concern over those deportations in May, while his remarks about alleged abuses in Venezuela come at a time when numerous human rights organisations have condemned the Venezuelan authorities’ crackdown on political opposition after a contested election last July.

The declaration of Turk as persona non grata does not have an immediate impact, but the government could move to expel his office from the country, as has occurred in the past.

Tensions have been high in Venezuela since President Nicolas Maduro declared victory in a 2024 presidential election, which the opposition has maintained was fraudulently stolen by the government.

Human rights groups have said that the Maduro government oversaw a crackdown on dissent after the election, which left dozens dead. Police also arrested opposition lawmakers, whom the government accuses of collaborating with hostile foreign powers.

A recent legislative and regional election saw lower turnout amid calls for a boycott from the opposition and fear of government repression.

While the Maduro government has criticised the administration of US President Donald Trump for its mass deportation of immigrants living in the US, which has also drawn concern from human rights groups, Venezuela has been open to cooperation with the Trump administration on questions of immigration enforcement, agreeing to receive people deported from the US in March.

Shaquille O’Neal was a dominant force in the NBA, a 7-foot-1 gentle giant who shattered boards, racked up four titles and left an indelible mark as one of the best centers in basketball history. But since his retirement in 2011, Shaq has shown that his impact goes far beyond sports.

Now, in the business world, from offices and boardrooms, Shaq is focused on remaining the most dominant ever.

Beyond his impressive height, one of O’Neal’s most distinguishing traits is his sense of humor. In the “Power Moves with Shaquille O’Neal” Netflix series, which premiered on June 4, he acknowledges that his mindset is “80% humor and 20% seriousness” when it comes to running his businesses. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t take his responsibilities seriously. In fact, he believes that some people tried to exploit his outgoing nature when he first started his business ventures.

“Yes, a lot of people try to take advantage and that just drives me to do more things,” O’Neal told L.A. Times en Español.

Shaquille O’Neal walks on the court before Game 1 of the NBA Finals between the Pacers and Thunder in Oklahoma City.

(Julio Cortez / Associated Press)

He is accustomed to people trying to exploit his perceived weaknesses.

“They always said, ‘With the way he shoots free throws, he’ll never win a championship.’ OK, maybe that’s true, but I’m going to dominate the game so much that free throws don’t even matter.”

He brings the same mentality to his position at Reebok, where he is president of basketball — a position he assumed in 2023 — and is leading a push to bring relevance back to a brand that once bet on him to be a star.

“When I went to Nike, they said, ‘Yeah, we wanted to give you your own sneakers, but we gave them to another guy.’ And I said, ‘Excuse me? To this guy?’ And then when I went to Reebok, they said, ‘We believe in you, we’re going to give you your own shoes,’” O’Neal recalls.

That loyalty was not forgotten. Today, 30 years after signing with Reebok as a player, O’Neal is back, not to launch retro updates of his shoes, but to make decisions, train a new generation of athletes and reshape the brand’s place in a fiercely competitive market.

Shaq didn’t join Reebok’s executive team just for nostalgia’s sake. His vision is clear: Take a chance like they took a chance on him in the 1990s.

“They took a chance on young Shaq. He took a chance on young AI [Allen Iverson]. He took a chance on young Shawn Kemp. And we turned the plan into a dominant number two. Never number one, but never number three,” O’Neal explained.

With that logic, the former player decided not to bet Reebok’s current NBA marketing budget all on one superstar.

“I wanted to go the traditional route. ‘Hey, let’s go for Shai [Gilgeous-Alexander]. Let’s go for Jaylen Brown.’ But when you talk to agents, these guys want big numbers. … You’re going to spend 85 or 90% of the budget,” O’Neal said.

His team — including his son, Shareef — convinced O’Neal to invest in emerging talent with a strong social media presence and a mindset of their own.

Case in point is WNBA Chicago Sky player Angel Reese, who signed with Reebok in 2023.

“Angel reminds me of AI. She’s going to do it her way, the way she wants to do it. She doesn’t care what anyone else says,” O’Neal said.

Shaquille O’Neal, left, and Allen Iverson watch the NBA Rookie Challenge on Feb. 18, 2005, at the Pepsi Center in Denver.

(Mark Terrill / Associated Press)

He sees Reese not only as a great athlete, but as an influential figure who embodies the disruptive spirit he wants to restore in the Reebok brand.

O’Neal isn’t just impressed by what he sees on the court. He’s looking for something more.

“I’m looking for someone who isn’t getting the recognition he deserves,” he said. “We live in a world where, once they get noticed by one or two guys, they stick with them forever.”

He said he was underestimated in his early days. Despite being selected with the first pick in the 1992 draft and making an immediate impact with the Orlando Magic, he said during early career business meetings “they never looked at me. They always looked at my manager. It was like, ‘Do you think he understands business?’”

That prompted him to study business administration and management and get serious about his financial education.

“I just thought, ‘Let me get a degree … so you know I understand that I’m in charge of my own destiny,’” O’Neal said.

Now, as president of Reebok basketball, he also values athletes’ family ties, their work ethic, their environment and their desire to represent something bigger than themselves.

“I like the people, the moms, the dads, the coaches. People want to be represented in a certain way,” O’Neal said.

He doesn’t presume to have all the answers. He admits he’s had to adapt and learn.

“It’s just about challenges. I’ve always been one to step up to meet them. … I had to learn a lot, learn about this business,” he said.

To appeal to the broadest group of customers, he has relied on a close circle of advisors that includes his son, Shareef.

“I had to bring in my son to help me identify with the crazy Generation Z, because they do what they want. They follow their own path. They have their own rules,” O’Neal said.

While still a strong, determined figure, O’Neal has learned to accept feedback from others.

“I don’t think my best quality is listening,” he admits. But in his new role, he’s had to let go of some of his old-school style and trust his team.

O’Neal was one of the most dominant players the NBA has ever seen. Now he’s one of the most successful athletes in the business world. His investment portfolio includes franchises of businesses such as Papa John’s, Five Guys, 24 Hour Fitness and his own line of products and apparel. He also holds commercial endorsement contracts with brands such as Icy Hot, The General insurance and Carnival Cruises, among others.

But his business success has not been linear.

“On the road to success, there are many failures and you simply have to try to have more successes than failures,” he said.

His secret has been to surround himself with skilled people.

“I have great teammates,” O’Neal said. “My friend wins a championship by herself. It’s called delegation.”

Shaq has turned his image into a global brand, but he insists the key has been staying true to his values. It all revolves around his family.

“I am who you think I am. I realized I couldn’t have done any of this without my family and their blessings,” he says.

He said his faith and personal values help him manage the impact of his success.

“I said it about seven years ago, never call me famous,” O’Neal said. “Celebrities are jerks. I just want to be a normal person. I’m a respectful person. I love kids. I love the elderly. I love helping those in need. I love making people smile. So the answer to the question of how I keep my feet on the ground, you know exactly how I do it: Salaam-alaikum [Peace be upon you], brother.”

Shaquille O’Neal’s fried chicken chain expanded with a Valencia location serving fried chicken sandwiches, sides and shakes.

(Big Chicken)

Long before he joined he executive team, O’Neal played a major role in Reebok’s success. In the early 1990s, while Nike and Adidas were building giant empires, Reebok bet on O’Neal and Iverson, and managed to position itself as a serious alternative, especially among urban youth. But over time, the brand lost ground.

Now, with O’Neal leading the renaissance of its basketball division, Reebok wants to regain that lost space. It doesn’t intend to compete directly with Nike or Adidas for big stars, but to create an ecosystem of its own.

“It’s not about a gamble. It’s about making the right decision,” O’Neal said.

O’Neal has been many things: NBA champion, most valuable player, All-Star, entrepreneur, commentator, DJ, actor, honorary police officer, philanthropist. But perhaps his most powerful facet is that of a man who builds bridges, pushes others and constantly reinvents himself.

This new movement, he says, is strategic and personal. He is enjoying a reunion with the brand that believed in him and an opportunity to return the favor by helping Reebok connect with customers.

This article first appeared in Spanish via L.A. Times en Español.