The U.S. has ordered the deployment of 10 F-35 fighter jets to a Puerto Rico airfield for operations against designated narco-terrorist groups operating in the southern Caribbean, sources said. The planes are expected to arrive by late next week.
This development adds to an already significant U.S. military presence in the region, as President Donald Trump pursues a campaign promise to intensify efforts against drug cartels accused of trafficking narcotics into the United States.
The disclosure came just hours after the Pentagon accused Venezuela of a "highly provocative" action, citing a flyover by Venezuelan fighter jets above a U.S. Navy warship on Thursday. A U.S. official, speaking anonymously, said two Venezuelan F-16s flew over the USS Jason Dunham, which is one of at least seven American warships in the Caribbean, carrying more than 4,500 sailors and Marines.
Earlier in the week, a U.S. military strike on Tuesday reportedly killed 11 people and sank a Venezuelan boat that Trump claimed was transporting illegal drugs. No further details have been provided about the substances on board or the legal framework under which the strike was authorised.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has also said the US will "blow up" foreign crime groups if needed, possibly in collaboration with other countries.
"Now they're gonna help us find these people and blow them up, if that's what it takes," Rubio said during a visit to Ecuador.
He then announced the US will designate two of Ecuador's largest criminal gangs, Los Lobos and Los Choneros, as foreign terrorist organisations.
At a news conference on Monday, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said the United States is "seeking a regime change through military threat." Venezuela’s Communications Ministry has not commented on the F-35 deployment or the fighter jet incident.
Trump has accused Maduro of leading the Tren de Aragua gang, which the U.S. designated a terrorist organisation in February. Maduro's government denies all allegations of involvement in drug trafficking.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called Maduro “effectively a kingpin of a drug narco state.” Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Hegseth defended Tuesday’s strike and said such actions would continue, citing the threat posed by narcotics.
"The poisoning of the American people is over," Hegseth said.
U.S. Marines and sailors from the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit have also been conducting amphibious training and flight operations in southern Puerto Rico as part of the military build-up.
F-35s are stealth multirole fighters with advanced capabilities that could potentially give the U.S. air dominance in any confrontation involving Venezuela’s air force, which also operates F-16 aircraft.
Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar criticised the deployment, calling Trump’s actions “lawless” and questioned the constitutional authority for military strikes in the region.
"Congress has not declared war on Venezuela, or Tren de Aragua, and the mere designation of a group as a terrorist organization does not give any President carte blanche to ignore Congress’s clear Constitutional authority on matters of war and peace," Omar said in a statement.
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