Trump's Stern Warning: Venezuelan Jets at Risk of Being Shot Down

Tue Sep 23 2025 13:37:25 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

In the wake of recent military tensions, Trump asserts that Venezuelan aircraft could be shot down if they threaten U.S. naval vessels, amid ongoing drug trafficking disputes.

President Donald Trump has issued a serious warning to Venezuela regarding their military jets, stating they could be shot down if they pose a danger to U.S. naval ships. This proclamation follows incidents of Venezuelan aircraft approaching U.S. vessels, and comes after the U.S. military conducted strikes against a drug-carrying vessel associated with Venezuelan gangs. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has denied allegations from the U.S. and expressed a desire for dialogue instead of conflict.

Donald Trump has warned that, if Venezuelan jets fly over U.S. naval ships and put us in a dangerous position, they'll be shot down.

The president's warning comes after Venezuela flew military aircraft near a U.S. vessel off South America for the second time in two days, U.S. officials told the BBC's U.S. partner CBS News.

The reports follow a U.S. strike against what Trump officials said was a drug-carrying vessel from Venezuela operated by a gang, killing 11 people.

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has said that the U.S. allegations about his country are not true, and that differences between the nations do not justify a military conflict.

Venezuela has always been willing to talk, to engage in dialogue, but we demand respect, he added.

When asked by reporters in the Oval Office on Friday what would happen if Venezuelan jets flew over U.S. vessels again, Trump said Venezuela would be in trouble.

Trump told his general, standing beside him, that he could do anything he wanted if the situation escalated.

Since his return to office in January, Trump has steadily intensified his anti-drug-trafficking efforts in Latin America.

Maduro has accused the U.S. of seeking regime change through military threat.

When asked about the comments, Trump said we're not talking about that, but mentioned what he called a very strange election in Venezuela. Maduro was sworn in for his third term in January after a contested election.

Trump went on to say that drugs are pouring into the U.S. from Venezuela and that members of Tren de Aragua - a gang proscribed as a terrorist organization in the U.S. - were living there.

U.S. strike on 'Venezuela drug boat': What do we know, and was it legal?

The U.S. military has moved to bolster its forces in the southern Caribbean, including through the deployment of additional naval vessels and thousands of marines and sailors to stem the flow of drugs.

The White House said on Friday that it is sending 10 F-35 fighter jets to Puerto Rico.

When asked about the build-up of military assets in the Caribbean, Trump said: I think it's just strong. We're strong on drugs. We don't want drugs killing our people.

Trump is a long-time critic of Maduro, and doubled a reward for information leading to his arrest to $50m (£37.2m) in August, accusing Maduro of being one of the largest narco-traffickers in the world.

During Trump's first term in office, the U.S. government charged Maduro and other high-ranking Venezuelan officials with a range of offences, including narco-terrorism, corruption, and drug trafficking.

Maduro has previously rejected the U.S. allegations.