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The Defense Minister of the Venezuelan regime Vladimir Padrino López boasted about the modern radars, missile systems, and anti-aircraft artillery of his army amid rising tensions with the U.S.
"With its modern radars, missile systems, anti-aircraft artillery, and the use of aircraft in close coordination with the Bolivarian Military Aviation, the CODAI (Comprehensive Aerospace Defense Command) has become the forefront of integrated defense for the nation," said Padrino López in a statement published on Instagram.
"The Bolivarian National Armed Forces (FANB) recognizes one of its greatest triumphs as having achieved an admirable level of technological independence and revitalization, even amid a criminal economic blockade, coercive sanctions, and the most grotesque military escalation by the United States," the military official added.
For the general, these "hostile circumstances" have strengthened "the national defensive power."
On Friday, Padrino López issued a direct warning to the United States following the flight of American military aircraft near the state of Zulia.
“The United States must understand that we are not savages, that we have rational capacity, that we think and feel… When we are called liars, there has to be a reaction,” stated Padrino during a military event broadcast on state television.
The military high command also stated: “Let there be no mistake, we know how to defend Venezuelan airspace,” asserting that the Bolivarian Armed Forces are ready to respond to what it referred to as “provocations from the Pentagon.”
The statements were made two days after two U.S. F-18 Super Hornet fighters flew over the Gulf between the states of Zulia and Falcón, in what was described as the closest incursion into Venezuelan territory in years, according to data from the portal Flightradar24.
The aircraft performed circular maneuvers in the area and then withdrew to the north after turning off their transponders.
The area is considered to be of high military sensitivity for the Maduro regime, as it houses the naval base “Rafael Urdaneta,” the Western Integral Defense Command, and several radar systems and anti-aircraft batteries.
On that same day, a US surveillance drone MQ-4C Triton was also detected off the Venezuelan coast, one of the most advanced reconnaissance systems in the American arsenal.
Padrino López accused Washington of trying to “intimidate the Venezuelan people” and stated that the aerial maneuvers are part of a strategy of “systematic harassment” against chavismo.
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