The United States aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford was spotted leaving Croatia after being directed by the Pentagon to the Caribbean amid rising tensions with Venezuela.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the carrier strike group to redeploy to the U.S. Southern Command's area of responsibility to support operations to dismantle transnational criminal organizations and counter narco-terrorism, the Pentagon said.

The Permanent Mission of Venezuela to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to a written request for comment.

Why It Matters

The Gerald R. Ford is set to join U.S. military assets deployed across the Caribbean as Washington continues to pressure Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro over narcotics smuggling. The Pentagon has also carried

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