Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro announced on Monday the deployment of 4.5 million militiamen throughout the country after the United States doubled the reward for information leading to his arrest and increased the number of troops sailing around Latin America and the Caribbean.

Maduro said that the activations are in response to the recent "extravagant, bizarre and outlandish" threats from the United States.

The U.S. deployed three Navy missile destroyers and around 4,000 military personnel to the waters off Venezuela in effort to thwart cartels.

As US destroyers closed in on Venezuela's coast on Thursday, China condemned Washington's military build-up and warned against foreign interference, backing Nicolas Maduro in a showdown that is drawing in powers far beyond the Caribbean.

China's foreign ministry opposed the American naval deployment near Venezuela amid the Trump administration's effort to combat drug cartels and pressure the Maduro regime.

Tensions between Washington and Caracas have escalated after Trump announced the deployment of three US warships off the coast of Venezuela as part of efforts to prevent drug trafficking. The move comes a day after US President Donald Trump doubled the bounty to $50 million on Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.

Three US warships to be stationed off the coast of Venezuela in fight against ‘narco-terrorists’, according to reports.