US to Deploy F-35s to Puerto Rico After Venezuelan Jet Incidents
The U.S. is sending 10 F-35 fighter jets to Puerto Rico in response to increased tensions with Venezuela, according to sources cited by Reuters.
According to the news outlet, the F-35s are slated to arrive at Muñiz Air National Guard Base near San Juan by late next week. Officials have not disclosed which service branch operates the jets or where they are being deployed from.
The deployment follows a Thursday incident in which Venezuelan F-16s flew over the guided-missile destroyer Jason Dunham in international waters. The Pentagon called it a “highly provocative move” that “was designed to interfere with our counter-narco-terror operations.”
President Donald Trump told reporters Friday that commanders have the authority to respond to any future threats. “If they do put us in a dangerous position, they’ll be shot down,” he said.
The deployment marks the first inclusion of land-based strike aircraft in the ongoing U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean, which Pentagon officials said is aimed at countering narco-trafficking. As part of that effort, the U.S. bombed a vessel in the region it claimed was carrying drugs from Venezuela.
Currently, eight U.S. naval vessels are operating in the region, including three Aegis-class destroyers, the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group, and the nuclear-powered fast-attack submarine USS Newport News, alongside roughly 4,500 sailors and Marines.
