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Washington.- The president of the United States, Donald Trump, warned Venezuela this Friday that if its fighter jets put his country's forces "in a dangerous situation" they "will be shot down", a day after the Pentagon confirmed that two Venezuelan F-16s flew over a US destroyer in the Caribbean.
"I would say they're going to get into trouble," Trump declared after being asked by reporters in the Oval Office.You may be interested in: RD CELEBRA ANTE VENEZUELA
The leader was questioned after the Department of Defense -renamed this Friday as the Department of War- reported that two Venezuelan F-16 fighter jets flew over the destroyer USS Jason Dunham, which was sailing in international waters of the Caribbean. The Pentagon called this act a "provocative maneuver" to interfere with actions against "narco-terrorism". Days earlier, the U.S. attacked a supposed drug boat, causing the death of eleven traffickers who, according to Washington, belonged to the transnational criminal organization Tren de Aragua, which they link to the government of Venezuelan Nicolás Maduro. Faced with the question of how he would react if he perceived a real threat from Venezuelan planes, Trump was blunt. "I would say, general, if they do that, you have the option to do whatever you want, okay?" he affirmed, addressing General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Pete Hegseth, head of the Pentagon. "If they fly in a dangerous position, I would say that you, or your captains, can make the decision about what to do," he added. Asked how close the planes got, Trump didn't want to go into details: "I don't want to talk about that. But if they put us in a dangerous position, they will be shot down." These statements are framed amid the escalating tension between the U.S. and Venezuela. According to a person familiar with the matter who confirmed to CBS on Friday, the US Administration has ordered the deployment of ten fighter jets in Puerto Rico to combat drug trafficking in the Caribbean.However, when asked about this matter, he dodged the question and simply replied that his Administration takes a "strong" stance in its fight against drugs.
"When I see ships arriving, like the other day, full of all kinds of drugs, probably fentanyl for the most part, but of all kinds... We're going to eliminate them," he said. "If people want to have fun on the high seas or in shallow waters, they are going to get into trouble. Maritime traffic has decreased considerably in the area where that happened," Trump commented. According to what he said, that area is nicknamed the "corridor" because it is a route to take drugs to the United States, but he affirmed that after the actions of the U.S. "the ship traffic has decreased a lot" in the area.
