A converted cargo vessel designed to serve as a special operations mothership has joined the growing U.S. military presence in the Caribbean, according to a Military Sealift Command spokesperson interviewed by Task & Purpose. Its mission has not been publicly disclosed.
Originally launched as a commercial roll-on/roll-off cargo ship in 2010, the vessel was later converted under a $73 million U.S. Navy contract to support a wide range of special operations missions. The Ocean Trader is capable of hosting up to 159 special operations forces in addition to its 50-member crew, operating at sea for as long as 45 days before resupply.
It is equipped with helicopter hangars, boat launch bays, aviation fuel stores, workshops, and intelligence facilities, while retaining a commercial appearance intended to blend with merchant traffic, as the outlet explains.
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Analysts note that the vessel can serve as both a floating barracks and a command center, allowing small teams to launch from the ship in helicopters, drones, or stealth boats. "If the ship is in the Caribbean and hosting special forces, it is clearly supporting the operation to interdict cartel drug boats," retired Navy Capt. Brent Sadler of the Heritage Foundation told the news site.
The deployment comes amid the largest U.S. naval concentration in the Caribbean since the 1960s. Alongside the Ocean Trader, U.S. forces include destroyers, cruisers, amphibious ships carrying Marines, and a Los Angeles-class submarine, totaling roughly 4,500 personnel.
Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez claimed on Thursday that five U.S. jets approached the country's coastline on Thursday, an action he described as "military harassment."
Recent operations by the U.S. have destroyed three suspected cartel-linked boats, killing several people and seizing over 1,000 kilograms of cocaine in cooperation with the Dominican Republic. The strikes follow executive orders designating Latin American cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, authorizing the use of military force.
U.S. officials have tied these missions directly to efforts to increase pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, whose government has been accused of facilitating narcotics trafficking. The United States has raised its reward for Maduro's capture to $50 million.
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