Already a subscriber? Make sure to log into your account before viewing this content. You can access your account by hitting the “login” button on the top right corner. Still unable to see the content after signing in? Make sure your card on file is up-to-date.
Venezuela has accused the United States of provoking a military confrontation by flying multiple fighter jets near its Caribbean coast.
Getting into it: While speaking to a Venezuelan news agency, Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino claimed that five US F-35 fighter jets were detected flying approximately 45 miles from Venezuela’s coast, calling the incident a serious threat to national security. “They are combat aircraft that U.S. imperialism has dared to approach the Venezuelan coast,” he stated, adding that the jets were flying at high altitude and speed, and had been picked up by both Venezuela’s air defense systems and commercial air traffic controllers.
Padrino described the flyover as an unprecedented and deliberate provocation: “We had never seen this deployment of aircraft, which we know are stationed in Puerto Rico, of the F-35 class.” He accused the United States of engaging in military harassment, claiming that “the presence of these planes flying close to our Caribbean Sea is a vulgarity, a provocation, a threat to the security of the nation.”
In a joint statement, Venezuela’s foreign and defense ministries echoed his concerns, alleging that the US actions “constitute a provocation that threatens national sovereignty and contravenes the norms of international law and the Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation.” They further warned that this incident adds to “a pattern of harassment that cannot be tolerated,” and called on the US to “immediately cease its reckless, thrill-seeking and warmongering posture.”
The United States has not publicly responded to Venezuela’s accusations about the recent presence of F-35 fighter jets near its airspace, and the Pentagon has so far declined to comment on the specific flight paths or operational intent of the aircraft. However, the incident comes amid a major and rapid buildup of US military assets in the Caribbean region over the past month, including the deployment of ten F-35 stealth fighter jets to Puerto Rico, eight US Navy warships, a nuclear-powered submarine, and multiple aerial refueling tankers.
The US government maintains that the operation is part of a counter-narcotics mission aimed at intercepting drug trafficking routes from Latin America to the United States. Yet, some have questioned the official rationale, noting that the scale, cost, and speed of the deployment far exceed what is typically required for standard anti-drug operations.
Venezuela’s leader, Nicolás Maduro, has repeatedly claimed that the real objective is regime change, accusing Washington of using the war on drugs as a pretext for covert military pressure on his government. The US has consistently denied this, insisting its focus is solely on combating Venezuelan drug traffickers that are supported by the Venezuelan government.
