The naval force deployed by the U.S. off the Venezuelan coast is clearly insufficient for a large-scale invasion— in 1989, the invasion of Panama, a much smaller country with less military strength, required nearly 28,000 Marines, compared to fewer than 4,000 now in the Caribbean—but it is more than sufficient for precision bombing operations, with approximately 140 Tomahawk missiles ready for immediate launch. Given the quality of Venezuelan air defenses, it is estimated that over 90% of these missiles would hit their targets.
