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- Trump, in a social media post, warned that Venezuela's airspace should be considered closed.
- It comes amid mounting tensions between Trump and Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
- Venezuela called Trump's post a "hostile" act.
President Donald Trump on Saturday warned airlines to consider airspace "above and surrounding" Venezuela to be closed.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote: "To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers, please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY."
The US has repeatedly threatened military action against Venezuela in recent weeks, as tensions between Trump and Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro mount over alleged drug trafficking networks in the South American nation. Caracas has maintained that the US's real goal is to overthrow the government.
In response to Trump's social media post, Venezuela said in a statement shared by its foreign minister on Telegram that "such statements constitute a hostile, unilateral, and arbitrary act incompatible with the most basic principles of international law."
"Venezuela denounces and condemns the colonialist threat that seeks to undermine the sovereignty of its airspace, constituting a new extravagant, illegal, and unjustified aggression against the people of Venezuela," Venezuela Foreign Minister Yvan Gin Pinto wrote in a post on Telegram.
Speaking to service members on Thursday, Trump praised the military's work tackling suspected Venezuelan drug traffickers at sea, adding that the US would begin land action "very soon."
The Federal Aviation Administration had last week warned carriers of a "potentially hazardous situation" when flying over Venezuela.
The agency said the "worsening security situation" and "heightened military activity" around the country could present risks to aircraft.
Following the security warning, six international airlines, including Iberia, TAP Air Portugal, Avianca, LATAM Airlines, Turkish Airlines, and GOL Linhas Aéreas, suspended flights to Venezuela.
Spokespeople for the airlines did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Venezuelan civil aviation agency, INAC, responded to the airlines' move by revoking their operating permits on Wednesday, stating that they had joined the actions of "state terrorism promoted by the United States government."
The International Air Transport Association, a global airline trade association, urged Venezuelan authorities to reconsider the revocation.
Business Insider has contacted the White House and the Pentagon for comment.