Tucker Carlson has suggested that former President Donald Trump plans to announce a war with Venezuela during a national address scheduled for tonight.

On Wednesday, Carlson shared on the Judge Napolitano podcast that, “Members of Congress were briefed yesterday about an impending war, which the president is expected to announce tonight during his address to the nation at 9 p.m. (2 a.m. UK time).”

However, Carlson was quick to issue several disclaimers, adding, “Who knows if this will actually happen? I’m not sure, and I always try to avoid overstating what I know, which is generally quite limited.”

This claim arises amidst widespread speculation concerning Trump’s upcoming address. According to the White House, the speech will focus on the administration’s accomplishments over the past year and outline its ambitions for 2026.

On Wednesday night, Trump intensified his actions against Venezuela by ordering a “total and complete” blockade of all sanctioned oil shipments to and from the country, escalating tensions further.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, known for his socialist regime, condemned the move, labeling it as “warmongering.”

Financial markets were quick to react.

Oil spiked toward $60 per barrel for Brent crude, while energy stocks including Exxon Mobil, BP and Shell soared.

Trump has assembled the largest US force in the Caribbean since the Cold War, including the USS Gerald Ford, the world’s largest aircraft carrier.

Tucker Carlsonhas claimed that Donald Trump will announce war with Venezuela during a televised address to the nation tonight

President Donald Trump boards Air Force One en route to Delaware on Wednesday in Joint Base Andrews, Maryland

Since September, the US has struck at least 25 alleged narco-terror vessels, killing at least 95 people, primarily in the Caribbean Sea, as well as in the Eastern Pacific Ocean.

The president accused Maduro’s government of using ‘stolen’ oil to ‘finance themselves, drug terrorism, human trafficking, murder, and kidnapping’ in a Truth Social post Tuesday.

Democratic Rep. Joaquin Castro warned that Trump’s ‘naval blockade is unquestionably an act of war’.

The escalation comes after last week’s seizure of a Venezuelan oil tanker called the Skipper off the country’s coast, which Maduro claimed amounted to ‘kidnapping’ the vessel’s crew.

Attorney General Pam Bondi said that the vessel had a history of transporting sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran in support of Islamist terror groups.

Trump has refused to rule out strikes inside Venezuela to target cartels which he claims Maduro is helping to facilitate the industrial scale production and export of the deadly opioid fentanyl into the US.

Venezuela is typically a hub for the transport of cocaine, whereas the vast majority of fentanyl imports reach the US via its land border with Mexico.

Suspicion surrounds America’s military buildup off Venezuela, particularly as it is one of the world’s most oil rich nations and a key supplier to China.

Trump’s campaign appears aimed at undermining domestic support for Maduro but the Venezuelan military said Wednesday it was ‘not intimidated’ by the threats.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro holds the Sword of Peru during an event marking the bicentennial of its delivery to Simon Bolivar, in Caracas, Venezuela, November 25

Two US Marine Corps MV-22 Ospreys depart at Mercedita International Airport on Wednesday in Ponce, Puerto Rico

US forces seizing an oil tanker last week

The foreign minister of China, the main market for Venezuelan oil, defended Caracas in a phone call with his Venezuelan counterpart Yvan Gi against the US ‘bullying.’

‘China opposes all unilateral bullying and supports all countries in defending their sovereignty and national dignity,’ he said. 

Caracas believes that the anti-narcotics operations are a cover for a bid to topple Maduro and steal Venezuelan oil.

The escalating tensions have raised fears of a potential US intervention to dislodge Maduro.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum waded into the dispute on Wednesday, declaring that the United Nations was ‘nowhere to be seen’ and asked that it step up to ‘prevent any bloodshed.’ 

Venezuela has been under a US oil embargo since 2019, forcing it to sell its production on the black market at significantly lower prices, primarily to Asian countries.

The country produces one million barrels of oil per day, down from more than three million in the early 2000s.

Capital Economics analysts predicted that the blockade ‘would cut off a key lifeline for Venezuela’s economy’ in the short term.

‘The medium-term impact will hinge largely on how tensions with the US evolve – and what the US administration’s goals are in Venezuela.’

The White House has been contacted for comment.