“Any military force in the world knows the power of the Igla-S and Venezuela has no less than 5,000” of them, Maduro said during an event with military personnel broadcast by Venezolana de Televisión (VTV).
The Russian Igla-S missiles are short-range, low-altitude systems similar to American Stingers. They can shoot down small aerial targets such as cruise missiles and drones, as well as helicopters and low-flying planes.
Maduro said the missiles, light enough to be carried by a single soldier, had been deployed “even in the last mountain, the last town, and the last city of the territory.”
The US has deployed 4,500 Marines and sailors to the Caribbean to strengthen operations against cartels and demonstrate military power. It has carried out several lethal strikes on boats off the Caribbean coast that it alleges were trafficking narcotics.
Lawmakers from both parties in the US have questioned the legality of the strikes on the alleged “narco boats.”
Last week, Trump said he had authorized the CIA to conduct covert action in Venezuela and said the US was considering expanding its military campaign to land, as part of an intensifying US pressure campaign that officials say is aimed at ousting Maduro.
MNA/
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