The U.S. Army released photographs on Wednesday of marines conducting rifle drills on one of the ships that have been sent to the Atlantic Ocean near Venezuela.
In one of the images published by the audiovisual service of the Defense, two marines can be seen aiming two rifles during a simulation on the deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima, designed to transport helicopters, aircraft for coastal surveillance, boats, and assault vehicles.
U.S. Department of Defense
The photo package shows military personnel operating aircraft, inspecting ship machinery, and conducting simulations of other maneuvers.
More than 4,000 military personnel, including some 2,000 marines, as well as aircraft, ships, and missile launchers, have been mobilized by the Donald Trump administration to patrol the waters near Venezuela and the Caribbean with the aim of combating cartels involved in drug trafficking. Caribbean with the aim of combating cartels involved in drug trafficking, although the White House has not yet confirmed the reasons for the mobilization.
The amphibious transport ships USS San Antonio and USS Fort Lauderdale, as well as the destroyers USS Gravely, USS Jason, Dunham, and USS Sampson, are part of the deployment off the Venezuelan coast, according to the specialized publication Military.com.
The Permanent Mission of Venezuela to the United Nations denounced in a statement «the escalation of hostile actions and threats by the Government of the United States of America,» and asserted that the deployment in the Atlantic of ships such as «the USS Lake Erie, a missile cruiser, and the USS Newport News, a nuclear-powered fast attack submarine,» represents «a serious threat to regional peace and security.»
US military deployment off the coast of Venezuela.
US military deployment off the coast of Venezuela.
