Turkey has for days been poised to unilaterally invade northern Syria over US objections, which Ankara officials say is to establish a 32 kilometer (20 mile) inside the war torn country, giving Turkey complete control of a region where the Syrian Kurdish YPG operates (People's Protection Units). Turkey has long considered the US-backed group, which forms the core of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), to be a terrorist extension of the outlawed PKK.

The Pentagon has condemned the impending Turkish unilateral move, with US Defense Secretary Mark Esper telling reporters early Tuesday that it would be unacceptable and thwarted by Washington, though it's unclear how far the Pentagon would be willing to go. "What we're going to do is prevent unilateral incursions that would upset, again, these mutual interests that the United States, Turkey and the SDF share with regard to northern Syria," Esper said.

Crucially, according to ABC News, US officials "have made clear that an invasion is an extremely risky venture that could threaten the safety of U.S. forces working with the SDF...".

On Sunday Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that his forces would launch an operation in Syria east of the Euphrates River at an unspecified start date, and noted that the US and Russia had been notified.

In ongoing negotiations this summer the US and Turkey have clashed over just such a "safe zone," given Turkey wants the area completely clear of Kurdish armed groups, which the Pentagon simultaneously backs.

Turkish defense officials have lately threatened their "patience is limited" as the army builds up its forces along the border. The Foreign Ministry on Friday warned, "We won't let this process be dragged out. If our expectations aren't met, we are fully capable of taking whatever measures [are needed] to ensure our national security."

Ankara has long condemned US training, logistics support, and weapons going to the YPG, especially as it operates in Manbij, a key Syrian Kurdish stronghold near the border with Turkey.

US officials have been present in Ankara for talks early this week to try and negotiate a last minute settlement to avoid the invasion, with Esper noting Tuesday there's been "progress" made on certain key issues.

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Following a failed coup plot and several new layers of US sanctions, National Security Advisor John Bolton has vowed to ruin Venezuela's finances and cut off the 'rogue state' from its trade partners with 'maximum sanctions.'

Addressing a gathering of Latin American states in Peru on Tuesday - where leaders met to discuss Venezuela's future without representatives of the Venezuelan government or the opposition - Bolton elaborated on a new executive order issued by the president.

Speaking in Lima, Peru in a conference on the crisis in Venezuela, Bolton said that new sanctions on Venezuelan state entities and individuals imposed on Monday were "sweeping," and sent "a direct signal to all those who enable [Nicolas Maduro's] dictatorship and undermine the democratically elected national assembly, or interim president Juan Guaido."

"Critically, the executive order also authorises sanctions on foreign persons who provide support, or goods, or services to any designated person including to the government of Venezuela," Bolton said. "This sweeping executive order authorises the US government to identify, target and impose sanctions on any person who continues to provide support to the illegitimate regime of Nicolas Maduro," he added.

Bolton also attacked countries which have voiced support for Venezuela, including Cuba, Russia, China and Iran, accusing them of supporting the "atrocities of a brutal dictator."

"In this hemisphere, it is our moral imperative to defend our neighbours against any threat, internal or external, that undermines peace, security and prosperity," Bolton added, echoing earlier remarks he made about the Monroe Doctrine being "alive and well."

Earlier, speaking to Fox and Friends on Tuesday morning, Bolton said the fresh sanctions against Venezuela announced this week go "well beyond anything we've done before."

The US and its allies feel a "renewed sense of confidence here, a renewed determination that we have to see Maduro moved out of power. I think the regime's isolation is increasing. I think the people of Venezuela need this regime to be removed and the legitimate national assembly government to take power and hold new elections," Bolton said.

On Tuesday, Venezuelan Vice Minister of International Communication William Castillo slammed Washington over the latest sanctions, calling them a sign of the Trump administration's "gangsterism" and "international banditry."