What are the primary cocaine routes from Venezuela to Europe and the US?
Executive summary
Venezuela functions mainly as a transit hub — not a primary producer — for cocaine bound for both Europe and the United States, with traffickers using aerial, maritime and island-hopping Caribbean corridors as well as routes through West Africa to reach Europe [1] [2] [3]. Analysts and official maps point to two broad flows: northward via Caribbean islands, Central America and Mexico toward the U.S.; and eastward via the Caribbean and West Africa into European ports and containerized maritime trade [4] [3] [5].
1. Venezuela as a transit state, not the main source
Most reporting and international data classify Venezuela as a transit or secondary storage/processing point rather than a major producer of coca; the UNODC and other analyses say the main cocaine flows to North America originate in Andean producers, and Venezuela’s role is mainly in moving or staging product produced elsewhere [1] [2]. U.S. and NGO estimates differ on scale — some U.S. reports have estimated hundreds of tons moving through Venezuela — but UNODC maps and experts stress that Colombia, Peru and Bolivia remain the primary producers [1] [6].
2. The Caribbean corridor to the United States: speedboats, hops and handoffs
Traffickers frequently use fast “go-fast” boats and short hops from Venezuela to nearby islands (Trinidad and Tobago, the Dominican Republic and other eastern Caribbean islands) where cargoes are transferred to larger vessels or moved north through Central America and Mexico toward U.S. markets [7] [5] [8]. U.S. and regional officials describe aerial and maritime departures from Venezuelan border and coastal states and then island-hopping through the Lesser Antilles and Caribbean archipelago into Central American transit points [2] [7].
3. The transatlantic/eastward route to Europe: West Africa and container lines
A growing share of cocaine leaving Venezuela is routed east: small aircraft, go-fast boats and freighters send shipments via the Caribbean to West Africa (Guinea‑Bissau, Cape Verde, etc.), where criminal networks and, in some cases, armed groups help move loads north into Europe or onward via maritime container routes into major EU ports [9] [3] [10]. European agencies and mapping in the UN World Drug Report show maritime container traffic and West African staging as key features of cocaine flows to Europe [3] [6].
4. How traffickers move shipments: airstrips, go‑fasts, freighters and semi‑subs
Investigations describe a toolkit: clandestine dirt airstrips for small planes that switch off transponders, 60‑foot go‑fast boats to nearby islands, fishing vessels and private yachts to avoid scrutiny, freighters concealing bricks in legitimate cargo, and occasional semi‑submersibles for mid‑Atlantic transfers — all used depending on destination and scale [5] [10] [11]. Containerised maritime trade remains attractive for large shipments to Europe because it hides volume within legitimate commerce [3].
5. Geographic variations inside Venezuela — northern coast vs. Guiana‑Brazil axis
Routes differ by coast: the northern and central Caribbean-facing states feed the island‑hopping and Central America corridors aimed at the U.S., while southern and eastern departures (toward Guyana, Suriname and northern Brazil) feed transatlantic lines toward West Africa and Europe [5] [7]. Local control by gangs and shifting enforcement pressure nudges traffickers to switch departure points and methods [12] [7].
6. Disagreement among official sources and policy implications
U.S. political rhetoric has at times presented Venezuela as central to fentanyl or the main conduit of U.S.-bound cocaine; independent analyses and the UNODC map challenge that narrative, emphasizing Andean origins and multiple routes that often bypass Venezuela entirely [1] [13]. That divergence matters for policy: military strikes aimed at maritime traffickers risk hitting vessels moving cocaine to Europe and may not affect the Pacific routes that supply most U.S.-bound cocaine [8] [1] [13].
7. What the seizure data and maps actually show
Seizure maps and GAO/UN reporting document significant cocaine transits through Venezuela to both regions, and note increases in flows to West Africa en route to Europe; they also underscore that maritime shipments from Venezuela historically provided a sizeable share of direct Europe-bound consignments [4] [2] [10]. The UNODC’s 2025 World Drug Report provides mapped flows showing multiple, sometimes parallel corridors rather than a single “air bridge” or single route [6] [1].
Limitations and caveats: available sources show consistent patterns but disagree on absolute volumes and on how central Venezuela is to U.S. versus European supply chains; some claims (for example, precise tonnages attributed to state actors) are asserted in some U.S. statements but are contested or not substantiated in UN reporting [1] [14] [13]. Investigative and enforcement evidence points to a fluid, adaptive trafficking system that shifts routes in response to interdiction pressure [10] [7].