News blog about US politics
Massive price reduction: Merck subsidiary reaches agreement with Trump
Updated 10/17/2025 – 3:23 amReading time: 10 minutes
In the dispute with Venezuela, Trump is relying on a military show of force. Trump critic John Bolton is charged. All news in the news blog.
Against the backdrop of the worsening crisis with the USA, the Venezuelan army has increased its presence on the border with Colombia. Local authorities in the Venezuelan states of Táchira and Amazonas announced on Thursday patrols and control measures at border crossings with Colombia. As reporters from the AFP news agency reported, armed forces were stationed around the International Bridge Simón Bolívar.
17,000 soldiers are deployed, said the commander of the Venezuelan armed forces in Táchira, General Michell Valladares. The measures were aimed at “increasing the readiness” of the armed forces and ensuring the integration of the “armed people”, said the commander of the Venezuelan army in the state of Amazonas, General Lionel Sojo. The army also has troops ready on the coast of Venezuela.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced on Thursday (local time) that the admiral at the head of the US Southern Command, Alvin Holsey, will step down at the end of the year – two years earlier than planned. The ranking Democrat on the Senate Defense Committee, Jack Reed, called Holsey’s resignation troubling given growing fears of a confrontation with Venezuela. “Admiral Holsey’s resignation only deepens my concern that this administration is ignoring the hard-earned lessons of previous U.S. military operations and the advice of our most experienced military leaders,” Reed said.
The decision had previously been announced that the anti-drug operations in the region would no longer be led by the Southern Command, but by a special unit.
According to an insider, the US military has again attacked a suspected drug ship in the Caribbean. A US government official who spoke on condition of anonymity told the Reuters news agency that some of the ship’s crew members apparently survived the shelling. He did not give any further details. There was initially no statement from the Pentagon. At least 27 people were killed in previous US military attacks on suspected drug ships off the coast of Venezuela. This had sparked criticism from legal experts and Democratic politicians who question the legality of the operations.
US President Donald Trump announced on Thursday (local time) a significant price cut for the diabetes and weight loss drug Ozempic from the Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk. The price of the drug will be reduced from $1,300 to $150, Trump said at an event at the White House. Novo Nordisk said the company had held discussions with the US government. However, the company did not comment directly on Trump’s announcement. The head of the responsible US health authority CMS, Mehmet Oz, said that the price negotiations for the drug class to which Ozempic belongs have not yet been completed.
