The Pentagon has raised alarms after two Venezuelan military planes flew close to a US Navy vessel in international waters on Thursday. This incident occurred just days after a deadly US strike on an alleged Venezuelan drug trafficking boat.
The Defense Department called the Venezuelan military’s actions “highly provocative” and warned against further escalation from President Nicolas Maduro’s government. The Pentagon also issued a strong message, advising the Venezuelan cartel to stop interfering with US military operations aimed at counter-narcotics and counter-terrorism.
Tensions between the United States and Venezuela have been rising, especially after US President Donald Trump authorized a strike that destroyed an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean on Tuesday. Trump claimed the boat belonged to a criminal group connected to Maduro, and the strike killed 11 people.
Caracas accused Washington of carrying out extrajudicial killings, saying the US “murdered 11 people without due process.” The attack, which could not be independently verified, marks a significant shift for the US, which typically uses policing methods rather than deadly force in such operations.
