Five U.S. F-35 fighter jets landed on the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico on Saturday, in what Washington describes as part of efforts to combat drug cartels in the southern Caribbean Sea.
اضافة اعلان
Eyewitnesses told Reuters that the American jets arrived Saturday, after earlier reports this month indicated that U.S. authorities had ordered the deployment of 10 such aircraft for this purpose.
Photographer Ricky Arduengo, working for the agency, said: “The F-35s were seen landing at the former Roosevelt Roads military base in the city of Ceiba.”
According to the agency, recent days have also seen U.S. helicopters, Osprey aircraft, and military personnel at the base.
Earlier, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated, following the destruction of a drug-laden ship in the Caribbean Sea, that the United States was preparing to launch a war against what he called “narco-terrorist organizations.”
Rubio said in early September that U.S. forces had delivered a “fatal blow” in the Caribbean against a drug vessel that had reportedly sailed from Venezuela.
For his part, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro accused Secretary Rubio of effectively dictating White House policy toward Caracas and of seeking to drag U.S. President Donald Trump into a military adventure against Venezuela.
Caracas has repeatedly insisted that the deployment of U.S. warships in the Caribbean has nothing to do with combating drug trafficking, but rather serves as a cover for attempts to exert pressure on Venezuela. —(RT)
