Donald Trump hasn't ruled out putting American forces on the ground in Venezuela, while expressing a willingness to hear directly from Nicolas Maduro regarding the Venezuelan leader's proposals to avert further US military escalation.

Asked if he would rule out US troops on the ground in the South American country, Trump said: "No, I don't rule out that, I don't rule out anything."

Still, questioned if he would speak to Maduro directly, the US president told reporters at the White House: "I probably would talk to him, yeah. I talk to everybody."

The US has been waging a campaign of deadly strikes against suspected drug trafficking boats off the Venezuelan coast and the Pacific coast of Latin America.

Maduro has repeatedly alleged that a US military buildup in the Caribbean is designed

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