U.S. President Donald Trump said on September 19 that the U.S. military hit a ¡°drug ship¡± in international waters, killing three terrorists on board.Venezuelan Defense Minister Lopez said the same day that the United States was launching a ¡°undeclared war¡± against Venezuela.

Trump: U.S. Army Again Fighting ¡®Drug Ships¡¯

Trump said on his social media platform "Real Social" that the U.S. military carried out a "fatal strike" on a "drug ship" in international waters, killing three "male drug terrorists" on board, and no American soldiers were injured.

Trump said that according to his order, the U.S. military "carried out a fatal kinetic energy strike against a drug ship belonging to a designated terrorist organization". "The ship was engaged in drug trafficking activities in the area of responsibility of the U.S. Southern Command, and it was confirmed by intelligence that it was sailing along a known drug trafficking channel in an attempt to transport illegal narcotics to the United States".

Trump has repeatedly stated that the U.S. military is fighting ¡°drug vessels¡± in international waters. On February 2, Trump said in social media that the U.S. military was firing on the vessels ¡°transporting illegal narcotic drugs to the U.S.¡± in international waters located in the Southern Command area, killing 11 ¡°confirmed¡± members of the gang ¡°Alava Train¡±. This was denied by the Venezuelan government. On July 15, Trump said he ordered the U.S. military to again attack a ¡°drug vessel¡± allegedly from Venezuela in international waters on the same day, three men on board were killed on site, and the next day he said the U.S. had ¡°sinked¡± three Venezuelan vessels in total.

Venezuela: U.S. does not declare war

Speaking on the recent U.S. military deployment in the Caribbean, Venezuelan Defense Minister Lopez said: ¡°This is an undeclared war ... whether it be drug traffickers, they are ¡®executed¡¯ in the Caribbean and have no right to defend.¡±

Lopez reiterated that the constitutional mission of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces (Venezuelan Army) is to "defend and guarantee national independence", and said that the army will continue to improve its combat readiness level to deal with all-round threats from the United States.

Venezuelan Attorney General Tarrick William Saab said on Monday that the use of missiles and nuclear weapons to kill fishermen on small fishing vessels is a ¡°crime against humanity¡± and the UN should investigate this.

Lopez announced on the 17th that in response to the U.S. military deployment in the Caribbean, Venezuela will launch a three-day military exercise on the northern island of Oshira from now on to raise the military readiness towards the Caribbean waters.

Venezuelan President Maduro warned on the 15th that the United States unilaterally launched "all-out aggression" against Venezuela, and the communication between the two governments was basically interrupted. He has proposed to convene a special meeting on regional sovereignty and peace urgently.

Recently, the U.S. has deployed several warships in the Caribbean waters near Venezuela to "fight the Latin American drug trafficking group", with tensions continuing between the two countries. In response to Trump's claim to have hit several drug trafficking ships, Venezuelan Interior Minister Cavallo said there is no evidence that drugs were hidden on the ships that were attacked by the United States.