Venezuela’s government has strongly condemned what it calls an “illegal incursion” by United States warplanes near its borders. The country accused the US of “military harassment” and warned that such actions threaten national security.
Venezuelan Defence Minister General Vladimir Padrino said on Thursday that at least five US F-35 fighter jets were detected near Venezuelan territory. He described the situation as a provocation by “US imperialism” and a direct threat to the nation’s security.
“We’re watching them, I want you to know. And I want you to know that this doesn’t intimidate us. It doesn’t intimidate the people of Venezuela,” Padrino said from an airbase.
He added, “The presence of these planes flying close to our Caribbean Sea is a vulgarity, a provocation, a threat to the security of the nation. I denounce before the world the military harassment, the military threat by the US government against the people of Venezuela, who want peace, work, and happiness.”
Detection of US Aircraft
Venezuelan authorities said the US planes were detected through multiple channels, including the country’s air defenses, the air traffic control system at Maiquetia International Airport in Caracas, and a commercial airliner.
A joint statement from Venezuela’s foreign and defense ministries said the US combat planes were detected about 75 km (46.6 miles) from Venezuelan shores. While this distance is well beyond Venezuela’s airspace limit of 22 km (12 nautical miles), the ministries accused the US of violating international law and endangering civil aviation in the Caribbean.
Venezuela also called on US Secretary of War Peter Hegseth to stop what it described as “reckless, thrill-seeking and warmongering” behavior that threatens regional peace.
The Pentagon has not yet responded to media requests for comment.
US Shift Toward Drug Cartel Conflict
US media reported that President Donald Trump has formally notified Congress that the US is engaged in a “non-international armed conflict” against drug cartels. Members of these cartels would now be treated as “unlawful combatants.”
This move is part of the US administration’s ongoing campaign to reclassify Latin American drug cartels as “narco-terrorists”, claiming they aim to destabilize the US by trafficking illegal drugs across the border.
Military Build-Up in the Caribbean
The tensions come after Trump sent F-35 stealth fighter jets to Puerto Rico, marking one of the largest US military deployments in Latin America in decades. The deployment has included air attacks on boats near the Venezuelan coast, which the US claimed were involved in drug trafficking.
According to Venezuelan officials and independent experts, 14 people have been killed in these US operations. Caracas has described these actions as extrajudicial killings.
The US has also deployed eight warships and a nuclear submarine to the region as part of its anti-drug operations. However, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro alleges that these actions are a covert attempt to bring about regime change in Venezuela.
The situation has intensified tensions between the US and Venezuela, with both sides accusing each other of threatening peace in the Caribbean. The US Pentagon has not issued an official comment, and Venezuela continues to monitor all foreign military movements near its coast.
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