Overview

• Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino said five combat aircraft were detected roughly 75 kilometers from Venezuela's coast and labeled the approach a threat to national security.
• Officials said an international airliner relayed the sighting to Maiquetía controllers, and Padrino described the jets as F-35s flying at 35,000 feet and 400 knots.
• The Pentagon gave no immediate comment and Avianca did not respond, leaving the account without independent verification beyond Venezuelan statements.
• The report comes as the United States sustains a Caribbean maritime and air deployment it says targets drug trafficking, including at least five F-35s sent to Puerto Rico in September.
• U.S. forces have recently carried out lethal strikes on small boats they linked to narcotics trafficking, drawing legal questions, while Caracas issued a protest that castigated U.S. leadership as warmongering.