The U.S. destroyer USS Gravely docked in Trinidad and Tobago as the Trump administration escalates military pressure on Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro.

A U.S. military ship on Sunday docked in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, amid tensions in the Caribbean sparked by U.S. military action against boats accused of attempting to smuggle fentanyl to the U.

As the United States expands what is already the largest military deployment the Caribbean has seen in decades, Venezuela’s socialist regime is warning that it could retaliate against Trinidad and Tobago if the island nation assists Washington in any attack on Venezuelan territory.

While those in authority trade words and military commanders ramp up their posturing, dozens of fishermen in Trinidad and Tobago feel their lives are at risk given the ongoing U.S. strikes and escalation of tensions with Venezuela. “If we die, we die, that’s how this life is,” Modie said.

As a U.S. warship docked in Trinidad & Tobago for what the country's government called “training exercises,” Venezuela lashed out, accusing T&T Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar of acting like a “military colony.”

Officials believe Trump’s ‘war on narco-terrorism’ is actually a push to remove Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro