U.S. Military Conducts Rapid Response Exercise in Caracas

The U.S. military executed a rapid response drill involving Marines and military aircraft in Caracas, Venezuela, on Saturday. This event followed the removal of former President Nicolás Maduro over four months ago.

Two Marine Corps Osprey aircraft, known for their dual helicopter and fixed-wing airplane features, performed flyovers of the newly reopened U.S. Embassy in Caracas. These aircraft landed in the embassy’s parking lot, with their downdraft affecting the nearby tree branches. After landing, military personnel disembarked from the aircraft.

The embassy highlighted the importance of this exercise on Instagram, noting, “Ensuring the military’s rapid response capability is a key component of mission readiness, both here in Venezuela and around the world.” Venezuela’s government announced the drill earlier in the week. Foreign Minister Yván Gil remarked that the exercise aimed to prepare for potential medical or catastrophic emergencies.

This drill took place nearly two months after the U.S. officially reopened its embassy in Caracas. The reopening marked the restoration of full diplomatic relations following Maduro’s removal from power in early January.

While some Caracas residents observed the aircraft from near the embassy, others protested the drill elsewhere in the city. Protesters displayed a Venezuelan flag with the message “No to the Yankee drill.” Previously, U.S. military aircraft operated over Caracas on January 3, when elite forces descended from helicopters and captured Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, who were then taken to New York to face drug trafficking charges. Both maintain their innocence.

The squadron that landed on Saturday was identified as the Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 263. This squadron is currently deployed aboard the USS Iwo Jima, an amphibious assault ship stationed in the Caribbean Sea. Following their arrest, Maduro and Flores were transported to this vessel.

The head of U.S. military operations in Latin America, Marine Gen. Francis Donovan of the U.S. Southern Command, witnessed the exercise in person. Gen. Donovan also met with senior Venezuelan officials and embassy personnel on Saturday. U.S. Southern Command shared on X that Donovan arrived in one of the Ospreys for his second official visit to Caracas this year. His previous visit in February included meetings with Venezuela’s defense and interior ministers.