Maduro waves thousands of Russian missiles to confront American threats news

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced that his country possesses 5,000 Russian-made anti-aircraft missiles to confront American military threats and confront American forces deployed in the Caribbean region.

At a ceremony attended by senior Venezuelan military leaders yesterday, Wednesday, Maduro said that Venezuela possesses at least 5,000 Russian-made short-range missiles known as “Igla-S” deployed in key air defense sites “to ensure peace.”

After the United States launched a series of strikes off the coast of Venezuela last September, targeting boats it said were being used to smuggle drugs, Maduro said, “Any military force in the world is aware of the power of Igla-S missiles, and Venezuela possesses at least 5,000 of them.”

The Igla-S missiles, designed to shoot down low-flying aircraft, were used in military exercises ordered by Maduro in response to US military activity, which angered the leaders of most Latin American countries.

Washington deployed hidden warplanes and warships in the Caribbean Sea region as part of what it calls anti-drug efforts, and destroyed at least 8 ships that it said were smuggling drugs from Venezuela to the United States.

Venezuela denounced this publication, describing it as a rehearsal for an operation to overthrow Maduro, whom Washington accuses of running a drug cartel.

The US military has amassed an unusually large force in the Caribbean Sea and the waters off the coast of Venezuela since the summer of this year, raising speculation that Trump may try to oust Maduro, who faces US charges of drug-related terrorism in the United States.