Caracas has accused Washington of violating a regional nuclear ban by deploying warships and a submarine to the Caribbean, prompting a call for UN intervention. The US has deployed three warships and 4,000 Marines to the area in what the White House described as part of a broader campaign against drug trafficking groups in Latin America. Additional US vessels, including the guided-missile cruiser USS Erie and the nuclear-powered attack submarine USS Newport News, are expected to arrive in the region soon. In response, Venezuela has deployed warships and drones to patrol its coastline. Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil Pinto has written to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, urging him to address the situation and denounce the placement of US troops and nuclear weapons in the Caribbean basin. He argued the deployments breach the Treaty of Tlatelolco, which prohibits nuclear arms in Latin America and the Caribbean. Gil dismissed the US justification for the buildup as combating narcotics, emphasizing that Venezuela is a territory free of illicit crops. On Tuesday, Gil met with UN Resident Coordinator Gianluca Rampolla, expressing concerns over the recent US military presence in the Caribbean, including the submarine deployment. He reiterated the threats from the United States to the region, which was declared a Zone of Peace in 2014 by CELAC, a recognition ratified by the United Nations. The Venezuelan government has branded the US deployments hostile and destabilizing, underscoring already strained ties between Caracas and Washington. Last month, Washington designated Venezuela-based Cartel de los Soles a criminal organization, alleging it is led by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and senior officials. Maduro, who was indicted on US drug charges in 2020, has rejected the claims as politically motivated. Bolivian President Luis Arce has accused Washington of using the war on drugs as a pretext for regional domination, and denounced the Caribbean buildup as an attempt to assert control over Latin America.