The White House confirmed on November 4th, 2025, that Congress has been informed eight times regarding attacks on "drug boats," with Secretary Rubio scheduled to brief a bipartisan group of 12 lawmakers on November 5th. This announcement comes as Russia's Alexei Zhuravlyov indicated no obstacles to supplying Venezuela with Oreshnik ballistic missiles or Kalibr cruise missiles, though Oreshnik supply is considered near impossible while Kalibr remains a possibility. Zhuravlyov also stated Russia recently delivered an unspecified number of Pantsir-S1 and Buk-M2E air defense systems to Venezuela for protection against the United States. These developments occur amidst heightened U.S. military activity in the Caribbean. The USS Gettysburg arrived in Ponce, Puerto Rico, between 6:46 PM and 7:16 PM UTC on November 4th, following U.S. Marine Corps stress shoot exercises on Camp Santiago, Puerto Rico. These deployments support U.S. Southern Command missions aimed at disrupting illicit drug trafficking and protecting the homeland. Previous reports indicated Russian Pantsir-S1 and Buk-M2E systems were delivered to Venezuela over the weekend. Further context includes U.S. B-1 and B-52 bombers being airborne around 4:46 PM UTC on November 4th, and the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group transiting the Strait of Gibraltar earlier that day. These military movements coincide with ongoing U.S. investigations into an alleged plot by Iran to assassinate President Donald Trump, with Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro previously implicated. Whistleblower testimony from September 2025 also alleged that election rigging methods used in Venezuela could be transferable to Dominion voting systems used in U.S. elections.
