The U.S. miltary is deploying 10 F-35 fighter jets to Puerto Rico as part of a widening military effort against drug cartels operating in the southern Caribbean, according to a report.
The move adds to an already significant military presence in the region as President Donald Trump carries out his Inauguration Day pledge to destroy narcotics networks that are poisoning American communities with drugs.
Sources told Reuters in a report published Friday that the jets are expected to arrive by late next week.
They will conduct operations against designated narco-terrorist groups.
The Pentagon announced the deployment just hours after accusing Venezuela of a “highly provocative” flight over a U.S. Navy warship.
On Tuesday, the U.S. military carried out a strike that killed 11 people and sank a Venezuelan boat.
Trump said the vessel had been transporting illegal drugs.
🇺🇸 ON VIDEO: U.S. Military Forces conducted a strike against Tren de Aragua Narcoterrorists. The strike occurred while the terrorists were at sea in International waters transporting illegal narcotics, heading to the U.S. The strike resulted in 11 terrorists killed in action. pic.twitter.com/iszHE0ttxQ
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) September 2, 2025
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“Earlier this morning, on my Orders, U.S. Military Forces conducted a kinetic strike against positively identified Tren de Aragua Narcoterrorists in the SOUTHCOM area of responsibility,” Trump wrote on the Truth Social social media platform.
“The strike resulted in 11 terrorists killed in action. No U.S. Forces were harmed in this strike. Please let this serve as notice to anybody even thinking about bringing drugs into the United States of America. BEWARE!” he wrote.
The Pentagon warned Venezuela after Thursday’s aerial encounter.
“This highly provocative move was designed to interfere with our counter narco-terror operations,” the Pentagon declared in a post on the social media platform X.
— Department of War 🇺🇸 (@DeptofWar) September 5, 2025
“The cartel running Venezuela is strongly advised not to pursue any further effort to obstruct, deter or interfere with counter-narcotics and counter-terror operations carried out by the US military.”
F-35s are advanced stealth fighters that could easily outclass Venezuela’s air force.
A U.S. official told Reuters that two older Venezuelan F-16s flew over the guided missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham on Thursday.
The Dunham is one of at least seven U.S. warships now stationed in the Caribbean, carrying more than 4,500 sailors and Marines.
U.S. Marines and sailors from the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit are also training in southern Puerto Rico.
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