US deploys 10 fighter jets to Puerto Rico, flaring Venezuela tensions
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The United States is deploying 10 F-35 fighter jets to Puerto Rico, escalating its military build-up in the Caribbean and intensifying tensions with Venezuela.
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A US F-35 fighter jet performs during the opening day of the Dubai Air Show, United Arab Emirates, Monday, Nov. 13, 2023 (AP)
The United States is deploying 10 F-35 fighter jets to Puerto Rico as part of a military build-up in the Caribbean, heightening tensions with Venezuela.
According to AFP, citing US officials, the move is allegedly tied to US President Donald Trump’s campaign against drug cartels, though it comes as Washington ramps up pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
The aircraft will join US Navy warships already operating in the southern Caribbean. Puerto Rico, a US territory of more than three million people, is serving as the forward base for these deployments.
Washington has accused Maduro of leading a vast drug cartel, using narcotics trafficking to fund his government.
Trump has tied Venezuelan groups such as the Tren de Aragua criminal organization to the Venezuelan leadership, portraying the deployment of F-35s and warships as part of an expanded counter-narcotics campaign.
“Venezuela has been very bad, both in terms of drugs and sending some of the worst criminals anywhere in the world into our country,” Trump told reporters this week.
Maduro: US naval deployment off Venezuela 'greatest threat in century'
Commenting on earlier deployments in the Caribbean, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro called it the continent’s “greatest threat in a century."
Speaking at a press conference, Maduro said eight US military vessels armed with 1,200 missiles and a nuclear submarine have been deployed off Venezuela’s coasts. He called the move “extravagant, unjustifiable, immoral, absolutely criminal, bloody threat.”
Maduro accused Washington of pursuing a policy of maximal military pressure against Caracas, forcing Venezuela to declare full preparedness for national defense.
“Venezuela is a peaceful state, but its people are made of warriors and they will never cede before threats or blackmail,” the president said.
Despite the heightened tensions, Maduro noted that Caracas maintains two diplomatic channels with Washington, one through US charge d’affaires ad interim in Colombia, John McNamara, and another with US Special Presidential Envoy Richard Grenell.
Background of escalating pressure
In August 2025, Washington deployed three guided-missile destroyers, the USS Gravely, USS Jason Dunham, and USS Sampson, near Venezuelan territorial waters. The deployment included more than 4,000 Marines and sailors, sparking widespread condemnation across Latin America.
Maduro denounced the move as “immoral, criminal, and illegal,” describing it as a direct attempt to impose regime change.
Read more: US threats to Venezuela undermine peace, stability: Envoy - Exclusive
Deadly clash at sea escalates confrontation
The tensions escalated further on Tuesday when US forces blew up a vessel in the Caribbean that Washington claimed was carrying drugs. According to Trump, the boat was linked to the Tren de Aragua network. Eleven people were killed in the attack, which Caracas denounced as an extrajudicial killing.
Venezuela's Information Minister Freddy Nanez claimed the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was misleading the US president by presenting him with a fabricated video of the operation, alleging the video was created using artificial intelligence.
On Thursday, the Pentagon reported that two Venezuelan aircraft flew close to a US Navy vessel in international waters in what it described as a “highly provocative” maneuver.
Maduro has warned that Venezuela is ready for “armed struggle in defense of the national territory” if attacked.
Venezuela maintains around 340,000 active troops, and Maduro said that he will be mobilizing at least four million militia members across the country in response to "outlandish" US threats. The country’s air force includes 15 F-16s acquired from the United States in the 1980s, along with Russian-built fighter jets and helicopters.
Read more: Trump revives historic 'Department of War' name in Pentagon rebrand
Washington defends operations as counter-narcotics mission
The US Department of Defense, which Trump has announced he will rebrand as the “Department of War,” defended the deployments as part of counter-narcotics operations. US officials said the goal is to dismantle “narcoterrorist” networks operating in Latin America.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio echoed this stance during a trip to the region, saying, “What will stop them is when you blow them up, when you get rid of them. If you’re on a boat full of cocaine or fentanyl headed to the United States, you’re an immediate threat to the United States.”
Caracas has rejected these justifications, accusing Washington of escalating aggression and violating international law.
In response to increased American threats against Venezuela's sovereignty, Maduro stated in late August that “there is no way [the US] can enter Venezuela."
