The U.S. military has reactivated a Cold War-era naval base in Puerto Rico and deployed thousands of troops to the Caribbean as tensions with Venezuela escalate, marking the largest American military buildup in the region in decades.
Roosevelt Roads Naval Station in Ceiba, Puerto Rico — closed since 2004 — became operational again in September when F-35B stealth fighters, Marine Corps helicopters and heavy transport aircraft began using the facility's 11,000-foot runway. The base sits approximately 500 miles from Venezuela's coast.
The return to operational use at the base is part of a massive military build-up in the region, in what officials describe as counter-narcotics operations, but the scale and composition of forces suggest preparations for potential broader military action. More than 10,000 U.S. personnel now operate in U.S. Southern Command's area of responsibility, with the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford en route to join them.
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