Pentagon Condemns Venezuela’s “Highly Provocative” Military Escalation After Trump-Ordered Strike on Narco-Terrorists

The Pentagon issued a sharp warning to the socialist regime in Caracas after two Venezuelan military aircraft engaged in what U.S. defense officials described as a “highly provocative move” near an American Navy vessel operating in international waters.

“Today, two Maduro regime military aircraft flew near a U.S. Navy vessel in international waters. This highly provocative move was designed to interfere with our counter narco-terror operations,” the Department of Defense said in a statement posted on X.

“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.”

Trump Strikes Back at Narco-Terrorists

The warning came just 48 hours after President Donald Trump authorized a targeted military strike against a vessel linked to the notorious Tren de Aragua gang — a Venezuela-based cartel designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.

“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 Truth Social.

“TDA is a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, operating under the control of Nicolas Maduro, responsible for mass murder, drug trafficking, sex trafficking, and acts of violence and terror across the United States and Western Hemisphere.

“The strike occurred while the terrorists were at sea in International waters transporting illegal narcotics, heading to the United States. 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!”

The president later doubled down, saying Wednesday that the operation sent a clear message: “Obviously, they won’t be doing it again. And I think a lot of other people won’t be doing it again. When they watch that tape, they’re going to say, ‘Let’s not do this.’”

A video of the strike, posted to Truth Social, depicts the fiery destruction of the narco-vessel. WARNING: The following video contains images of violence that may be disturbing for some readers.

Pentagon Vows More to Come

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth underscored that the mission is ongoing and far from over.

“We’ve got assets in the air, assets in the water, assets on ships, because this is a deadly serious mission for us, and it won’t — it won’t stop with just this strike,” Hegseth told reporters Wednesday.

“Anyone else trafficking in those waters who we know is a designated narco-terrorist will face the same fate,” he added.

Maduro Escalates

Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro responded by deploying troops and militias in an attempt to project defiance against Washington. However, the United States currently maintains about 4,000 troops across Latin America and the Caribbean as part of its broader counter-cartel operations.

Those efforts, backed by FTO designations, give the U.S. military expanded authority to directly engage cartel-linked vessels, air assets, and operatives engaged in smuggling and terror-related activities.

The message from Washington was unmistakable: America will not sit idly by while narco-terrorists funnel drugs, death, and chaos into the United States.