The U.S. military has reactivated a Cold War-era naval base in Puerto Rico and deployed thousands of troops to the Caribbean as tensions with Venezuela escalate, marking the largest American military buildup in the region in decades.
Roosevelt Roads Naval Station in Ceiba, Puerto Rico — closed since 2004 — became operational again in September when F-35B stealth fighters, Marine Corps helicopters and heavy transport aircraft began using the facility’s 11,000-foot runway. The base sits approximately 500 miles from Venezuela’s coast.
The return to operational use at the base is part of a massive military build-up in the region, in what officials describe as counter-narcotics operations, but the scale and composition of forces suggest preparations for potential broader military action. More than 10,000 U.S. personnel now operate in U.S. Southern Command’s area of responsibility, with the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford en route to join them.
Roosevelt Roads Returns to Military Operations
Satellite imagery and photographs from mid-September show F-35B fighters, MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft and CH-53K King Stallion helicopters operating from Roosevelt Roads. Construction crews were photographed Sept. 17 repaving taxiways and clearing facilities at what is now officially designated as José Aponte de la Torre Airport.
F-35s reportedly arrived at the facility Sept. 14, with open-source aviation analysts identifying them as F-35Bs based on photographs. Reuters documented five F-35s on the former Navy ramp.
The base closed 21 years ago following protests over military exercises on nearby Vieques Island. Various redevelopment proposals for the 8,650-acre site never materialized, and much of the property remained largely unused.
Puerto Rican state Sens. Nitza Morán Trinidad and Carmelo Ríos Santiago introduced Senate Resolution 286 in September to evaluate repurposing Roosevelt Roads for national security purposes.
“For decades, Roosevelt Roads represented an economic engine for the eastern region of the island,” Morán Trinidad said, according to the San Juan Daily Star. “Today, we have a responsibility to seriously and strategically consider the possibility of its facilities once again playing a key role — not only in the defense of the Caribbean and the Americas but also in the economic revitalization of Ceiba and the surrounding municipalities.”
USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group Heads to the Caribbean
The Pentagon announced Oct. 24 that Hegseth ordered the USS Gerald R. Ford and its carrier strike group to deploy to Southern Command from the Mediterranean Sea.
“The enhanced U.S. force presence in the USSOUTHCOM AOR will bolster U.S. capacity to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit actors and activities that compromise the safety and prosperity of the United States homeland and our security in the Western Hemisphere,” Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell posted on social media platform X.
The Ford, commissioned in 2017, is the Navy’s newest and largest aircraft carrier with a displacement of more than 100,000 tons. It is the largest active warship in the world. The ship carries a crew of approximately 4,600 and hosts nine squadrons of aircraft.
The carrier was in port in Split, Croatia, when the deployment order came. Two of the strike group’s destroyers — USS Forrest Sherman and USS Mitscher — were operating in the Red Sea and Arabian Sea and may not join the Caribbean deployment.
The carrier strike group will join the USS Iwo Jima Amphibious Readiness Group and 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, which have operated in the Caribbean since late August. That force includes more than 4,500 Marines and sailors.
U.S. Conducts Deadly Strikes on Suspected Drug Boats
U.S. forces have struck at least 11 vessels in Caribbean and Pacific waters since early September, killing more than 50 people in what the administration characterizes as operations against drug traffickers.
The most recent strike occurred Nov. 2, when six people were killed off Venezuela’s coast, according to a post by Hegseth on X. The Oct. 28 strike was the deadliest to date — 14 people killed across four vessels in the Eastern Pacific in three coordinated attacks, according to Hegseth.
Trump formally notified Congress Oct. 1 that the U.S. is in a “non-international armed conflict” with drug cartels, treating suspected traffickers as unlawful combatants. This has caused diplomatic pushback from both Venezuela and Colombia.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro said one victim was a fisherman named Alejandro Carranza. Trump responded by calling Petro an “illegal drug leader” and announced the suspension of counter-narcotics funding to Colombia.
USS Gravely Conducts Training in Trinidad and Tobago
The guided-missile destroyer USS Gravely docked in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, on Oct. 26 for joint military exercises with local forces. The port sits less than seven miles from Venezuela’s coast.
The Arleigh Burke-class destroyer remained through Oct. 30 while Marines from the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit conducted training with the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force.
Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar has publicly supported the U.S. military presence and the strikes on suspected drug boats. Her position breaks with the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) trade bloc, which has called for diplomatic dialogue.
U.S. Embassy Chargé d’Affaires Jenifer Neidhart de Ortiz said in a statement the exercises aimed to “address shared threats like transnational crime and build resilience through training, humanitarian missions, and security efforts.”
Venezuela’s Foreign Ministry called the exercises a “serious threat” to Caribbean peace and a “hostile provocation” toward Venezuela.
The U.S. military relies on the cooperation of other nations in the region for logistics and staging areas to continue conducting patrols and strikes against suspected drug-trafficking vessels.
Venezuela Mobilizes Military and Militia Forces
Venezuela has kept its military on heightened alert since Maduro declared a state of external emergency on Sept. 30, following the initial U.S. boat strikes and Caribbean military buildup.
The Venezuelan Air Force released video in late October showing Su-30MK2 fighters equipped with Russian-made Kh-31 anti-ship missiles. The Washington Post reported on Oct. 26 that Maduro has requested military assistance from Russia, China and Iran, including defensive radars, aircraft repairs and potentially missiles.
Adm. Alvin Holsey, commander of U.S. Southern Command, announced his retirement in October after one year in the position. Multiple outlets reported tensions between Holsey and Hegseth over concerns about the boat strikes’ legal justification.
Meanwhile, thousands of Venezuelan troops and militia were photographed by state media fielding various small-arms weapons while conducting urban training across Caracas. Other troops were spotted manning defensive positions along the Venezuelan coastline.
Although the Venezuelan military is reportedly “in shambles,” the Army consists of over 100,000 regular troops, backed up by even more militia in the Bolivarian Militia. The Venezuelan Air Force fields several Russian-made and armed planes, such as the Su-30, with modern anti-ship missiles. These planes pose a serious threat to U.S. forces in the region, likely spurring the recent Ford and F-35 deployment.
Caribbean Build-up Represents a Major U.S. Military Presence
Over 10,000 U.S. military personnel now operate in the Caribbean region across numerous naval vessels, aircraft squadrons and ground forces. The naval deployment represents roughly 14 percent of the Navy’s global combat fleet. The new base at Roosevelt Roads will provide a vital logistics hub for troops operating in the areas around Venezuela.
The force includes eight warships, a nuclear-powered submarine, F-35 fighter squadrons, MQ-9 Reaper drones, P-8 maritime patrol aircraft and specialized reconnaissance platforms. When the Ford carrier strike group arrives, it will add nearly 4,500 additional sailors and nine squadrons of carrier-based aircraft to the regional presence.
Trump confirmed on Oct. 15 that he authorized CIA covert operations inside Venezuela and said on Oct. 22 he plans to order strikes on land targets. He later backtracked and stated he is not considering strikes and does not believe the U.S. will go to war with Venezuela.
The Wall Street Journal reported Oct. 30 that U.S. officials had already identified land targets including ports and airstrips the Venezuelan military allegedly uses for drug trafficking operations. Trump also noted that Maduro’s days are numbered.
The F-35s now stationed in Puerto Rico provide an essential mission for U.S. forces in the area. They are capable of going toe-to-toe with any planes in the Venezuelan arsenal, such as the Su-30. As a multi-role fighter, the F-35s are also capable of conducting airstrikes and reconnaissance missions against ground targets.
The military buildup in the region provides options ranging from maritime interdiction to potential strikes against targets deep inside Venezuelan territory, though the administration maintains the deployment is focused on counter-narcotics operations.
Story Continues
Read the full article here