Several developments this week related to the Caribbean campaign against drug trafficking and foreign terrorist organizations
The NY Times posted an analysis of several satellite images showing troop movement in the Caribbean; development of U.S. military staging in Puerto Rico; and flight paths of strike aircraft departing the mainland U.S. We’re now looking at nearly 10K U.S. military personnel and multiple air and sea platforms operating in the area.
One illustration claims at least six drones, three surveillance aircraft, ten stealth fighters, and two resupply vessels temporarily based in Puerto Rico—not to mention the additional rotary and fixed-wing elements from the Marines and Air Force.
The same graphic paints three destroyers, the Iwo Jima Amphibious Readiness Group, and the secretive MV Ocean Trader operating in close proximity to Venezuelan waters (with Ocean Trader less than 100 miles from the coast).
Additional satellite images show what is allegedly a small, newly-constructed munitions bunker facility along with Reaper drones and gunships on the tarmac at the Rafael Hernandez airport on the opposite side of the island from Roosevelt Roads to the southeast closest to Venezuela.
It’s been a busy week for combating drug cartels and FTOs in the Caribbean. Among them, U.S. Southern Command boss announcing an early retirement; the first drug boat hit in the Caribbean with survivors [so far, two]; and President Trump announcing CIA’s possible in-country covert action against the the war on drugs.
Where the U.S. Is Building Up Military Force in the Caribbean
