NYT: Trump, Maduro Spoke Last Week

President Donald Trump spoke with Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro last week and discussed a possible meeting between them in the United States, the New York Times reported on Friday, citing multiple people with knowledge of the matter.

The newspaper added that there were no plans at the moment for such a meeting, which, if it occurred, would be the first-ever encounter between the authoritarian Venezuelan leader and a US president.

Trump had previously indicated he would be open to speaking with Maduro, though the Times report indicates that such a conversation has already happened.

The Trump administration has described Maduro as an illegitimate leader who leads a drug trafficking organization known as Cartel de los Soles.

Since early September, the US government has been bombing alleged drug boats originating in Venezuela and other Latin American nations.

On Thursday, Trump repeated his previous threats to begin bombing land-based targets.

"The land is easier, but that's going to start very soon," Trump told reporters.

Trump campaign in the Caribbean

White House officials have said that Trump does not see pursuing military and diplomatic tracks as mutually exclusive in Venezuela.

A major military buildup in the Caribbean has been underway for months, and Trump has authorized covert CIA operations in the South American nation. On Sunday, Reuters reported that the US was about to enter a new phase of Venezuela-related operations, which could include the deployment of covert options.