By Phil Stewart, Idrees Ali and Patricia Zengerle

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and the top U.S. general Dan Caine made a surprise visit to Puerto Rico on Monday, the first trip there by senior Pentagon officials since the start of a military buildup in the Caribbean that has escalated tensions with Venezuela.

Hegseth and Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, were seen being received by Puerto Rico's governor, Jenniffer Gonzalez, in photographs she posted to social media site X.

U.S. President Donald Trump has ordered the Department of Defense to rename itself the Department of War, a change that will require action by Congress. The new name would apply to Hegseth as well, altering his title to "Secretary of War."

The Pentagon posted a video of He

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