U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine visited Puerto Rico yesterday to rally the troops for President Trump’s escalation against Venezuela. “We thank President Trump and his administration for recognizing the strategic importance of Puerto Rico to U.S. national security and for their fight against drug cartels and the narco-dictator Nicolás Maduro,” said Puerto Rico’s Gov. Jenniffer Gonzalez, reported the Washington Times.
However, unpleasant memories of U.S. training activities, including the 1999 death of a civilian security guard at a U.S. Navy training range, still persist. On Sunday, Sept. 7, dozens of people gathered at the Muniz National Guard base to protest the increase in U.S. military activities on the island. They held signs demanding, “No to War” and “No to military bases in P.R.” Gonzalez dismissed their concerns, saying that Puerto Rico is playing an important role in Trump’s ongoing fight against drug trafficking, since it represents a U.S. border in the Caribbean.
