US Navy Aircraft Overflight Increases Regional Risk: Padrino

May 9, 2024 Hour: 1:36 pm

On Thursday morning, U.S. authorities announced that two U.S. Navy F/A-18F Super Hornet fighter jets will carry out a flyover over “Georgetown and its surroundings” with the approval of the Guyanese government chaired by Irfaan Ali.

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Shortly after, Venezuelan Defense Minister Gen. Vladimir Padrino warned that this type of U.S. military maneuvers increase security risks in South America and the Caribbean.

“We already warned about the threat to regional peace posed by the presence of the aircraft carrier USS George Washington in the Caribbean. They now announce the deployment of F-18 aircraft to fly over Georgetown and its surroundings,” he said.

“The Bolivarian National Armed Forces strongly rejects these repeated provocations by the Southern Command, sponsored by the government of Guyana, which has assumed the role of a new U.S. colony,” Padrino added.

“Our Comprehensive Aerospace Defense System remains activated in the event of any attempt to violate Venezuelan geographic space, including our Essequibo territory. Alerts!,” Padrino warned.

Hoy #9May la @EmbassyGuyana
informa que el gobierno de @presidentaligy y el @Southcom realizan ejercicios militares en Georgetown.

El presidente @NicolasMaduro ha denunciado reiteradamente la grave amenaza que esta alianza significa para la paz de toda #AméricaLatina y el Caribe pic.twitter.com/hT9XXgx0mB

— Comisión Defensa del Esequibo (@EsequiboOficial)
May 9, 2024

The text reads, “On May 9, the U.S. Embassy in Guyana informed that the administration of President Ali and the SouthCom are carrying out military exercises in Georgetown. President Nicolas Maduro has repeatedly denounced the serious threat that this alliance represents for the peace of all of Latin America and the Caribbean.”

The F18 aircraft deployment takes place as part of growing military cooperation between the U.S. and Guyana, which is related to the dispute over Essequibo, a border area rich in natural resources and oil belonging to the Venezuelan territorial heritage.

“This is further proof of the provocations being made to Venezuela from the U.S. Southern Command. As President Nicolas Maduro has repeatedly denounced, a war machine against our country has been activated,” Venezuelan Foreign Affairs Minister Yvan Gil said.

“ExxonMobil’s desires have no limits. After appropriating Guyana, they intend to destabilize the region,” he added, emphasizing that their behavior threatens the Peace Zone agreed upon by the countries of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC).

“Meanwhile, the Government of Guyana violates its international commitments, including the 2023 Argyle Agreement, by ceding its sovereignty to the U.S. power that threatens an entire continent,” Gil highlightened.

#INVIDEO �� | In Tocopero, Falcón state, #Venezuela ��, the hometown of the president, Nicolás Maduro (@NicolasMaduro), affectionately welcomes the president. pic.twitter.com/VjqzwN8JSV

— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish)
May 7, 2024