Venezuelan fighter jets fly near a US destroyer: a provocation over the Caribbean
In a tense scene above the waters of the Caribbean Sea, Venezuelan fighter jets approached a US destroyer conducting operations in international waters, in what the Pentagon described as a serious provocation by the government of Nicolás Maduro.
The incident occurred just days after a deadly US airstrike targeted a Venezuelan vessel suspected of drug trafficking, thrusting the Caribbean into the spotlight as a new stage for confrontation between Washington and Caracas, where accusations of terrorism and narcotics trafficking intertwine with displays of military power.
A US official told Reuters that two Venezuelan F-16 fighter jets flew over a US Navy destroyer in the Caribbean on Thursday. Following the incident, the United States issued a stern warning to Venezuela, urging it not to interfere in the intensive US military operations being conducted in the region.
The Pentagon stated that the event took place in international waters, further escalating tensions between the two sides, only two days after a US strike killed eleven people aboard a Venezuelan vessel. President Donald Trump asserted that the ship was carrying narcotics.
Nonetheless, legal experts questioned the legitimacy of the strike, despite the Trump administration’s claim that it had the authority to target individuals suspected of being members of the Tren de Aragua crime syndicate, a drug trafficking organization supplying the United States and previously designated as a terrorist group by Washington earlier this year.
In a brief statement confirming only that the incident had occurred, the Pentagon likened the government of Nicolás Maduro to a narcotics cartel, an allegation firmly rejected by Caracas. Trump has personally accused the Venezuelan president of leading the Tren de Aragua.
“Today (Thursday), two military aircraft belonging to the Maduro regime flew close to a US Navy vessel in international waters,” the Pentagon said, describing the action as an extremely provocative step.
“We strongly advise the gang running Venezuela not to undertake any further efforts to obstruct, deter, or interfere with US military operations against drug trafficking and terrorism,” the statement added.
The Venezuelan Ministry of Communications did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
