US President Donald Trump sharply escalated his threats against Venezuela on Saturday, ominously warning that the country's airspace should be considered "closed."

Caracas, which views a large US military buildup in the Caribbean as a pressure campaign to oust President Nicolas Maduro, slammed Trump's warning as a "colonialist threat."

"To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers," Trump wrote on his Truth Social network, "please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY."

The US president did not elaborate.

His warning comes days after US aviation regulators told airlines to use increased caution near Venezuela over the mounting tensions, prompting multiple major carriers to suspend flights.

A statement by the Venezuelan forei

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