"Two Venezuelan F-16 fighter aircraft buzzed a US Navy destroyer in international waters on Thursday. The Pentagon called the move "highly provocative." The incident raises tensions between the US and Venezuela and came just days after President Donald Trump authorized a strike on a suspected drug vessel that originated from the South American country. In a statement Thursday evening, the Pentagon said that two Venezuelan military aircraft flew near a Navy vessel in international waters."
""This highly provocative move was designed to interfere with our counter narco-terror operations," the Pentagon said, adding that "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." CBS News, the first to report on the incident, identified the Venezuelan aircraft as F-16 fighter jets and the US ship as the USS Jason Dunham, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer."
Two Venezuelan F-16 fighter jets flew near and buzzed a US Navy destroyer in international waters on Thursday. The Pentagon called the maneuver "highly provocative" and said it was designed to interfere with US counter narco-terror operations, warning that the cartel running Venezuela should not obstruct US military counter-narcotics and counter-terror operations. CBS News identified the aircraft as F-16s and the ship as the USS Jason Dunham, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer. Venezuela acquired about two dozen F-16s in the 1980s but retains only a few airworthy jets because arms embargoes limit spare parts; the country also operates Sukhoi Su-30 fighters. The incident occurred days after President Donald Trump authorized a strike on a suspected drug vessel originating from Venezuela and contributes to heightened tensions between the two countries.
Read at Business Insider
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