Pentagon Warns Venezuela After Military Jets Near US Navy Ship Amid Drug Strike

Tensions have escalated between the United States and Venezuela following a US military strike that killed 11 people on a boat allegedly linked to Venezuelan drug trafficking. In response, two Venezuelan military F-16 jets flew near the US Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham operating in international waters, an act the Pentagon called "highly provocative." The US Department of Defense warned the Maduro government not to interfere with US counter-narcotics and counter-terrorism operations. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a key architect of the administration's Latin America policy, labeled Maduro a "narco-terrorist" and vowed to intensify efforts against drug cartels, aligning with President Trump's stance on cracking down on drug trafficking networks. Maduro's government condemned the US naval presence as a "criminal and bloody threat" and declared readiness for armed defense of Venezuelan territory. The US has also increased the reward for Maduro's arrest to $50 million amid accusations of his involvement with drug cartels.