US-Venezuela tensions escalate as F-35 jets land in Puerto Rico

San Juan [Puerto Rico], September 16: Military tensions between the United States and Venezuela continue to rise as five US F-35 fighter jets landed in Puerto Rico in the Caribbean archipelago, while Caracas condemned a US Navy raid on a Venezuelan fishing vessel, Euro News reported.
The five US F-35 jets arrived on Saturday at the former Roosevelt Roads base in Ceiba, Puerto Rico, as part of a deployment ordered by US President Donald Trump to strengthen operations against drug trafficking in the Caribbean, Euro News noted.
Helicopters, Ospreys, and military personnel were also seen at the base, sparking local protests over Puerto Rico's militarisation.
The deployment came shortly after Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth paid a surprise visit to Puerto Rico, and only days after Washington carried out a strike in the southern Caribbean against a drug-carrying vessel operated by the Tren de Aragua gang, which departed from Venezuela, Euro News added.
Meanwhile, Venezuela's foreign ministry accused the US of sending personnel from a Navy destroyer to "illegally and hostilely" board a tuna boat in Venezuelan waters.
Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil told reporters that 18 armed personnel remained on the vessel for eight hours, preventing the nine fishermen from performing normal activities, before releasing them under the escort of the Venezuelan navy.
"Those who give the order to carry out such provocations are seeking an incident that would justify a military escalation in the Caribbean," Gil said, adding the objective is to "persist in their failed policy" of regime change in Venezuela, Euro News reported.
Earlier this week, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro mobilised the country's armed forces along 284 "battlefronts" to secure all coastlines.
Thousands of troops and militiamen participated in manoeuvres under "Plan Independencia 200," aimed at protecting Venezuelan sovereignty in response to US actions, Euro News added.
Source: Times of Oman