Washington put a $50 million bounty on Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro’s head.

The US military’s strike on a boat allegedly carrying drugs from Venezuela does little to dispel speculation over President Donald Trump’s true goal in the region.

Officially, the deployment of the US Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group and 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit to the Caribbean is about narcotics interdiction.

But unlike Coast Guard cutters and speedboats that usually chase — rather than blow up — smugglers, these ships are built to strike targets on land.

Coming weeks after Washington put a $50 million bounty on Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro’s head, some see it as a setup for a snatch-and-grab, or worse.

It’s also awakened some long dormant interventionist fantasies.

For many Venezuelans, the deployment revives memories of a botched 2020 coup attempt, when a group led by an American ex-Green Beret tried and failed to land on Venezuela’s shores, leaving several dead.