Piracy in the Caribbean in the New World were violated with greater frequency by the merchants of other nations. The Spanish port on the island of Trinidad off the northern coast of South America, permanently settled only in 1592, became a major point of contact between all the nations with a presence in the Caribbean. In the early 17th century, expensive fortifications and the size of the colonial garrisons at the major Spanish ports increased to deal with the enlarged presence of Spain's competitors in the Caribbean, but the treasure fleet's silver shipments and the number of Spanish-owned merchant ships operating in the region
German interest in the Caribbean considered building a coaling station in the Caribbean, and proposed to purchase the island of Curaçao from the Netherlands. However Chancellor Bismarck was strongly opposed; he wanted to avoid difficulties with the U.S. and nothing happened. Bismarck was ousted from power in 1890 and German naval strategists again turned their attention to the Caribbean but failed to establish a naval base at Margarita Island (Venezuela). In the Venezuela Crisis of 1902–1903 the United Kingdom and Germany sent warships to blockade Venezuela after it defaulted on its foreign loan repayments. Germany intended to land troops and occupy Venezuelan ports, but U.S.