The U.S. Southern Command reported on Friday, January 23, the successful destruction of a smuggler's vessel in the eastern Pacific Ocean. This is the first such forceful action by the American military since the high-profile arrest of Nicolás Maduro in Caracas earlier this month. This was reported by AP, writes UNN.
Details
According to the American military, the vessel was directly involved in the transportation of prohibited substances. The released video captures the moment of a powerful explosion of the boat directly during its movement. As a result of the strike, two people died, one managed to survive - currently, the U.S. Coast Guard is conducting a search and rescue operation to apprehend her.
Військово-морські сили США заявили про чергове перехоплення судна з наркотиками в Тихому океані. Про це повідомляє CNN. Зазначається, що екіпаж есмінця USS Pinckney (DDG 91) перехопив судно, яке перевозило 1800 кілограмів кокаїну на суму понад 40 мільйонів доларів. «Ми пишаємося тим, що можемо зірвати незаконну торгівлю наркотиками, яка підживлює злочинність і насильство», - заявив командир USS Pinckney Адам Аяла. Це вже третє перехоплення наркотиків есмінцем USS Pinckney за останні два тижні. Загалом, за цей період було вилучено понад 4,5 тонни кокаїну та марихуани на суму понад 100 мільйонів доларів. Нагадаємо, у квітні президент США Дональд Трамп заявив, що США направлять військові кораблі до берегів Венесуели для боротьби з наркотрафіком.
This incident was the 36th in a series of attacks on smuggler vessels since September last year, which, according to official data, have resulted in the deaths of at least 117 people.
Context: from hunting tankers to arresting Maduro
The current strike is part of a large-scale campaign by the Trump administration, which links illicit drug trafficking to Venezuela's political leadership. After U.S. special forces captured Nicolás Maduro and his wife in Caracas on January 3 and brought them to New York, U.S. activity in South American waters significantly increased.
The military's main focus is currently not only on speedboats but also on sanctioned oil tankers connected to the former Venezuelan regime.
Trump's statements and control over routes
Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Donald Trump announced the unprecedented success of this campaign. According to him, the United States has managed to "virtually stop almost 100% of all drugs coming by water." Despite criticism from Maduro's supporters, who call these actions an attempt to forcibly remove a foreign government, the White House insists that the strikes are crucial for national security and the destruction of cross-border criminal networks.