Pete Hegseth visits Porto Rico to stimulate the fight of the Caribbean drug cartel

The United States has intensified its fight against the Caribbean drug cartels on Monday while the war secretary Pete Hegseth and the president of the joint chiefs, General Dan Caine, led to Puerto Rico to strengthen military operations.

Puerto Rican Governor Jenniffer González-Colón and the first gentleman, Dr. José Yovín Vargas, welcomed the couple, supervising the visit as a demonstration of support from the Trump administration in the training of troops on the island.

“We thank President Trump and his administration for recognizing the strategic importance of Puerto Rico for our national security and for their commitment to fighting the drug cartels and the Narco-Dictator Nicolás Maduro,” said the governor. “We fully support the first policies of America that protect our borders and fight illegal activities to defend the American people.”

The meeting took place at the Muñiz air base in Caroline, outside San Juan, and attracted brass, including the Warrant Officer of the Puerto National Guard, Carlos José Rivera-Román, public security secretary Brig. General Arthur Garffer and other senior military leaders.

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Hegseth tackles training of American troops at the Muñiz air base in Caroline, Puerto Rico on September 8, 2025, in the midst of an extended military accumulation in the Caribbean. (Credit: the governor of Puerto Rico Jenniffer González-Colón)

Hegseth spoke to nearly 300 soldiers at the base, thanking them and describing them as “American warriors”. The war secretary has also provided an assertion that those who serve in the armed forces will be best equipped and prepared in the world.

The visit comes as the American army extends its naval imprint near Venezuela, which is part of President Donald Trump’s push to stifle the flows of Latin American drugs.

Naval and air assets were sent to face traffickers and secure key sea roads, some already used this week against the alleged narco-terrorists.

The United States is strengthening military presence in the Caribbean near Venezuela in the middle of Trump’s efforts to stop drug trafficking

The Secretary of War Pete Hegseth welcomed members of the service at Muñiz air base in Puerto Rico on September 8, 2025, while the United States intensified operations against regional drug traffickers. (Credit: the governor of Puerto Rico Jenniffer González-Colón)

Last Tuesday, the Navies struck a ship in the South Caribbean Sea which would have transported members of the Gang Tren of Aragua asking for drugs in the United States

While the American army has long worked to counter the cartel and international gang organizations from the late 1980s, the strike killed 11 alleged members of Tren of Aragua – that the Trump administration designated as a terrorist organization in February – marked a final change compared to previous operations of seizure and apprehension.

President Donald Trump He clearly indicated since his first administration that he firmly opposes the Maduro regime and even announced a reward of $ 50 million for information leading to his arrest and conviction.

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Video sequences showed the ship shortly before destroying it. (@Realdonaldtrump via social social)

Hegseth also sent a major firepower to the region, including the USS Iwo Jima, USS Lake Erie, USS Jason Dunham, USS Gravely and Uss Sampson – to drive out criminal networks and narco -terrorists.

Trump’s decision to deploy American troops off the South American nation prompted Maduro last Monday to denounce the decision as an attempt to change regime and said: “Venezuela is confronted with the greatest threat that has been seen on our continent in the past 100 years.”

In this context, González-Colón threw Puerto Rico as the first American line in regional repression.

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“The leadership of President Trump in the fight against narcotrafficking Place Puerto Rico – our Caribbean border of the nation – in the foreground of our security and our interests,” added González -Colón. “For the first time, I believe that we confronted the problem with its root, directly striking at the source of the drug flow.”