NEW YORK, November 12. /TASS/. The US military is using MQ-9 Reaper drones and fifth-generation F-35 fighter jets to neutralize alleged drug traffickers near Venezuela’s coast, the CNN TV channel said, citing sources.
"Most of the strikes have been carried out using MQ-9 Reaper drones, the sources said, which are remotely piloted aircraft used by the military and are typically armed with Hellfire missiles. Other strikes have been conducted by manned aircraft, including AC-130J gunships and fighter jets, the sources said," the TV channel reported.
CNN emphasized that to date, "the Pentagon has not publicly acknowledged what aircraft or hardware the military is using to conduct the strikes." The news outlet reiterated that since early September, "the US military has killed 76 people in 19 strikes that have destroyed 20 boats as part of a campaign that Washington says is aimed at curtailing the flow of drugs into the United States."
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has repeatedly stated that the country is currently under the most serious threat of an invasion by the US in the past 100 years. Washington accuses the Venezuelan authorities of insufficiently actively combating drug trafficking. The US Navy deployed eight warships, one nuclear submarine, more than 16,000 troops to the Caribbean and, in international waters, continued to neutralize speedboats carrying individuals baselessly accused of smuggling drugs from Venezuela.
According to the New York Times, US President Donald Trump instructed his administration to cease all efforts to reach a diplomatic settlement of escalating tensions with Venezuela and gave permission to the CIA to conduct clandestine operations there. US media outlets reported that in the next few weeks, the US may begin carrying out strikes on drug cartel targets on Venezuelan soil. However, on October 31, Trump denied considering such an option.