South America

DONALD Trump sent warships to Venezuela as the country’s dictator Nicolas Maduro moved 15,000 troops to the border with Colombia.

Three US destroyers and 4,000 marines sailed to the coastline just weeks after the Washington administration announced a $50million bounty on the South American tyrant’s head.

6

6

6

6

A guided missile cruiser, the USS Erie, and a nuclear-powered fast attack submarine are also expected to reach the Caribbean coastline next week, a source confirmed.

The move comes as the US tries to officially crackdown on threats from Venezuela’s drug cartels, one of which officials accuse Maduro of spearheading.

In a bid to push US vessels out, the tyrant announced on Monday the deployment of 15,000 troops to Colombia, just a day before declaring the launch of his own fleet of vessels along the Caribbean coast.

In a video shared online, Venezuela’s Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino said this would include a “significant” number of drones, as well as naval patrols “further north in our territorial waters”.

The US deployment of vessels comes as the US President tries to squash  “narco-terrorist organizations” in the region.

During Trump’s first term in the office, Maduro and other high-ranking Venezuelan officials were indicted in federal court in New York on several charges including participating in a “narco-terrorism” conspiracy.

Investigators say Maduro’s cartel worked hand-in-hand with the rebel Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), which the US has labeled a terrorist organization.

The US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) “has seized 30 tons of cocaine linked to Maduro and his associates, with nearly seven tons linked to Maduro himself,” Bondi said.

The US government has also seized more than $700 million in Maduro-linked assets, including two Venezuelan government aircraft, since September last year, according to Bondi.

GREEDY RULER

Elected by a narrow margin in March, 2013, Maduro has presided over the country for year as its problems skyrocket.

As his country suffered and starved, Maduro lived a life of luxury and reportedly racked up a fortune of £220million.

In 2018, he sparked outrage after being pictured enjoying a lavish meat banquet hosted by celebrity chef Salt Bae in Istanbul.

While Venezuelans can barely afford fresh meat, the president tucked into the infamous gold-crusted steaks.

“This is a once in a lifetime moment,” the president said as puffed on a cigar and ignored the widespread food shortage raging in his country.

Opposition leader Julio Borges, who fled Venezuela for fear of arrest, tweeted: “While Venezuelans suffer and die of hunger, Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores have a good time in one of the most expensive restaurants in the world, all with money stolen from the Venezuelan people.”

Only a few months earlier, his two stepsons Yoswal Gavidia Flores and Walter Gavidia Flores managed to blow £36,000 on an extravagant 18-night stay at the Ritz hotel in Paris.

The bill was equivalent to the monthly wages of 2,000 Venezuelans – a casual two weeks for the pair who frequently parade themselves around Europe’s most expensive restaurants and hotels.

And back at home, the president and his family can escape the chaos of their own making by hiding out in his luxury enclave in the capital, complete with its own bowling alley, swimming pools, lakes and restaurants.

Maduro and his so-called “dirty dozen” of top lieutenants live in fabulous estates which would not look out of place in the hills of Hollywood.

The five star bolthole is guarded by seven successive checkpoints and hundreds of heavily armed troops.

6

6

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — The United States and Argentina on Monday announced that they are working on a plan to allow Argentine tourists to again travel to the U.S. without a visa.

It probably will take two to three years before visa-free travel becomes a reality for Argentine passport holders, but the Trump administration’s move to kickstart the process marked a show of support for President Javier Milei, its staunchest ally in South America and a darling of conservatives around the world.

The gesture coincided with a visit by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to Buenos Aires, the Argentine capital, for closed-door meetings with Milei and his officials. Noem signed the statement of intent alongside Security Minister Patricia Bullrich in Milei’s office.

Noem, on horseback at the country’s sprawling Campo De Mayo army base and donning a cowboy hat and jeans, told reporters that the Trump administration would put Argentina on an “expedited path” to enrollment in the Visa Waiver Program.

Still, she cautioned that securing approval within the next year “would be very difficult,” according to a White House pool report.

The Department of Homeland Security praised Milei for reshaping Argentina’s foreign policy in line with that of the U.S.

“Under President Javier Milei’s leadership, Argentina is becoming an even stronger friend to the United States — more committed than ever to border security for both of our nations,” the statement said.

This first step toward waiving visa requirements for Argentines, it added, “highlights our strong partnership with Argentina and our mutual desire to promote lawful travel while deterring threats.”

The department cited Argentina as having the lowest visa overstay rate in the U.S. of any Latin American country.

Trump’s loyal ally in South America

The removal of rigorous U.S. visa requirements — particularly at a time when President Trump is tightening restrictions for foreign nationals — would offer a symbolic victory to Milei, a self-described “anarcho-capitalist” who rose to power as a far-right outsider mimicking Trump’s war-on-woke rhetoric and skillful use of social media.

When he became the first world leader to visit Trump after the U.S. election, Milei pranced around Mar-a-Lago like an excited school boy.

At the Conservative Political Action Committee convention in Washington in February, he gifted billionaire Elon Musk a bureaucracy-slashing chainsaw to support his DOGE campaign to eliminate government waste.

When not riding the far-right, pro-Trump speaking circuit, Milei is focused on straightening out South America’s second-largest economy after years of turmoil under left-wing populist rule. Through tough budget cuts and mass layoffs, Milei has succeeded in driving down Argentina’s notorious double-digit inflation.

The last time Argentines didn’t require a visa to enter the U.S. was in the 1990s under another free-market devotee, the late former President Carlos Menem.

Menem’s neo-liberal reforms and pegging of the peso 1 to 1 to the U.S. dollar destroyed Argentina’s industry, exacerbating poverty in what a century ago was one of the world’s wealthiest countries.

In the crisis that followed, the U.S. reimposed visa restrictions in 2002 as young Argentines seeking to flee misery lined up at European embassies and began to migrate illegally to the U.S.

“Argentina has had the advantage of the program before, and they’re looking to get back on track and reenrolled,” Noem, who grew up on a farm in rural South Dakota, said while feeding sugar cubes to a dark brown horse named Abundance, according to the pool report.

When pressed about her talks with Milei, she was short on specifics, saying they discussed security partnerships and “the business we could be doing together.” She said she appreciated Milei’s “embrace” of Trump’s policies.

The Argentine presidency described Monday’s preliminary agreement as “a clear demonstration of the excellent relationship, based on trust” between Milei and Trump.

After riding Abundance through the grassy fields of the army base, Noem rejoined U.S. and Argentine officials for asado — the traditional meat-centric barbecue and a national passion.

She is the third member of Trump’s Cabinet to meet Milei in Buenos Aires this year, after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Tough limits on travel to Trump’s America

More than 40 mostly European and wealthy Asian countries belong to the exclusive club that allows their citizens to travel to the U.S. without a visa for up to three months. However, border officers have the power to turn anyone away.

About 20 million tourists use the program each year. Currently, Chile is the only Latin American country in the program.

Overseas travel to the U.S. plunged in the early days of Trump’s return to the White House as tourists, especially from Latin America, feared being caught in the administration’s border crackdown. Some canceled travel plans to protest his foreign policy and anti-immigrant rhetoric.

But those numbers began to rebound in April, with more than 3 million international arrivals — 8% more than a year earlier — from countries other than Mexico or Canada, according to the International Trade Administration, an agency under the U.S. Department of Commerce.

In addition to clamping down on the southern border, Trump has put up additional obstacles for students, tourists and others looking to travel to the U.S.

His recently passed “big, beautiful” bill of domestic priorities calls for the enactment of a new “visa integrity fee” of $250 to be charged in addition to the cost of the visa itself.

Travel industry executives have expressed concern that the charge could drive away tourists who contribute more than $2 trillion annually and 9 million jobs to the U.S. economy, according to the International Trade Administration.

About a quarter of all travelers to the U.S. come from Latin America and the Caribbean, the agency says.

Arrivals from Argentina have jumped 25% this year — a bigger increase than from any other country.

Debre and Goodman write for the Associated Press. Goodman reported from Medellin, Colombia.

A BRITISH backpacker has gone missing after spending a month living on the streets of Peru following a violent robbery.

Hannah Almond, 32, travelled to Cusco in March for a yoga retreat to “find herself” – but was left stranded, penniless and traumatised after being assaulted and robbed of her passport.

5

5

5

With no way to get home, the fashion graduate was sleeping rough under the Belén Bridge, where her remaining belongings were torched by local thugs.

Footage from local media appeared to show her clothes and personal items in a flaming pile on the street.

Hannah was last seen three days ago after befriending an elderly homeless man at a makeshift camp, and has not been heard from since.

A desperate search is now underway to locate the missing Brit from Grimsby.

A family friend told the Daily Mail on Monday: “She is one of the most pure loving souls ever — she is very generous and always wants to help people.

“But she does not trust anyone after getting robbed and assaulted.

“Some locals burned all her belongings from under the bridge.”

They added: “She was contacting her mum every now and then through other people’s phones.

“Police went to check on her two days ago and she has not been seen since. Cusco is a trafficking hotspot, so it’s very worrying.”

The British Consulate in Peru has confirmed that Hannah’s tourist visa has expired and her immigration status is now in limbo.

“She is in an illegal situation. Her tourist visa has already expired,” British Consul Mark Atkinson told local media.

“Sometimes we’ve paid for hotel stays, given her money for food, that sort of thing. But she always ends up coming back here,” he explained, referring to the bridge camp.

Hannah’s friends have since launched a GoFundMe page to fund urgent efforts to help her.

As of Tuesday, it already pulled in £7,930 from 306 donations — just shy of its £9,000 goal.

The funds raised will be used to cover urgent travel and support costs, including a flight and accommodation for a close family member or friend to fly to Peru and gently persuade Hannah to come home.

Her loved ones hope that a familiar face on the ground will help break through the fear and confusion that has kept her from accepting official help.

The money will also go towards providing Hannah with safe accommodation, food, and access to emergency medical or psychological care — which may be vital before she is well enough to travel.

5

5

Additional funds will cover logistical costs needed to get her home, such as securing a replacement passport, renewing her visa, and arranging her journey back to the UK.

A message on the fundraiser reads: “Hannah travelled to Peru in March hoping for an adventure, but instead, she has found herself in a terrifying and heartbreaking situation.

“She was robbed and assaulted, losing her passport, phone, and all of her money.

“Since then, Hannah’s mental health has severely declined.”

“Despite attempts to help her through official channels, Hannah is deeply fearful and unable to accept support from the embassy or local authorities.

“She is extremely vulnerable, isolated, and not safe living on the streets of Peru.

“Hannah is a deeply kind and gentle soul, and we are desperate to get her the care and safety she deserves. We need to bring her home.”

More than 100,000 Brits travel to Peru every year, with Cusco – the gateway to Machu Picchu and the Inca Trail – one of the most popular spots.

FCDO travel advice warns tourists to remain alert, saying: “Personal attacks, including sexual assaults, are infrequent but do happen, mostly in the Cusco and Arequipa areas.”