CEIBA, Puerto Rico — Venezuela is preparing for war, conducting military drills on its Caribbean island amid a growing U.S. military presence in the region.
On Thursday night, five U.S. F-35 stealth fighter jets were stationed across the tarmac from Ospreys at the old Roosevelt Roads Naval Station south of San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The ramp there — and several other sites on the island — are being headlined as assets in the war on drugs in the Caribbean, though clearly focused on Venezuela and its leader, Nicolás Maduro.
Venezuela, in defense mode, has ordered intense training of its own on an island 16 miles off its coast.
“Today our commander-in-chief has ordered us (to conduct) an exercise, a campaign maneuver, it is called that, campaign maneuver ‘Sovereign Caribbean 200,’” Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez said.
The drill is meant to demonstrate sovereignty over the island territory in direct response to U.S. Navy warships now in the Caribbean — and the warplanes in Puerto Rico.
The U.S. Department of War posted a picture on X showing an F-35B Lightning jet, describing the deployments as part of efforts to combat Latin American drug cartels.
President Donald Trump announced this week that U.S. forces attacked and destroyed three alleged drug vessels leaving Venezuela and reportedly headed to the U.S. Video of two of those strikes was released. At least 14 people aboard the vessels were killed.
Venezuela denied the claims and accused U.S. drug enforcement of planting drugs, later showing off three tons of cocaine as evidence.
Meanwhile, Colombia’s president — accused by Trump of shirking his responsibilities in the war on drugs — pushed back, saying, “Sir, you are killing innocent young people, that is called murder.”
The staging and the training are the most certain signs of what can only be called uncertainty for what’s to come in our part of this hemisphere.
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