The United States launched cyber attacks against Iranian missile control systems and a spy network after Tehran downed an American surveillance drone, according to US media reports.
After a fun-filled weekend of golf and sumo, US President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe are set to hold formal talks on Monday, with trade and tensions with North Korea topping the agenda.
The United States claimed on Tuesday that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was on his way out, saying he had a plane ready and that senior officials were plotting to oust him, even as the leftist firebrand appeared to survive a military uprising.
Cuba branded U.S. national security adviser John Bolton a “pathological liar” on Thursday for his allegation that it has troops stationed in ally Venezuela and said the latest U.S. sanctions would further hurt but not vanquish the Cuban people.
The Trump administration on Wednesday intensified its crackdown on Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela, rolling back Obama administration policy and announcing new restrictions and sanctions against the three countries whose leaders national security adviser John Bolton dubbed the three stooges of socialism.
The US says it is sending aid to crisis-hit Venezuela following a request from Juan Guaidó, the opposition leader who has declared himself interim president. Mr Guaidó's move last month won swift backing from the US and others but triggered a power struggle.
The White House warned traders on Wednesday not to deal in Venezuelan gold or oil following its imposition of stiff sanctions aimed at forcing socialist President Nicolas Maduro from power.
Consulted on possible military option in Venezuela, the declared interim President of Venezuela, Juan Guaidó, told the CNN channel that all the options are on the table “to achieve the cessation of the usurpation”.
The US has imposed sanctions on Venezuela's state-owned oil firm PDVSA and urged the country's military to accept a peaceful transfer of power. National Security Adviser John Bolton said President Nicolás Maduro and his allies could no longer loot the assets of the Venezuelan people. Efforts by the opposition to unseat Mr Maduro have increased in recent days.
The US has warned Venezuela that any threats against American diplomats or opposition leader Juan Guaidó will be met with “a significant response”. National Security Adviser John Bolton said any such “intimidation” would be “a grave assault on the rule of law”.