RUSSIAN TU-160 BOMBERS IN VENEZUELA
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has slammed Russia for sending
long-range bombers to Venezuela for a joint military operation. Moscow
retaliated saying Pompeo's statement was 'absolutely inappropriate'...
RT's Maria Finoshina witnessed the arrivals of the bombers earlier on
Monday.
Russia Deploys Two Strategic Bombers To Poor Venezuela, U.S. Outraged
Blackjack Supersonic Jet
The United States is blasting Russia for deploying two strategic bombers
to Venezuela.
"The Russian and Venezuelan people should see this for what it is: two
corrupt governments squandering public funds and squelching liberty and
freedom while their people suffer," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
tweeted Tuesday.
The Kremlin responded to Pompeo's comments, calling them "unacceptable"
and "highly undiplomatic for a secretary of state."
Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the U.S. has no business criticizing the
money being spent on the drills, saying just half of the U.S. defense
budget could feed all of Africa.
Two Russian planes capable of carrying nuclear bombs landed in Venezuela
Monday for what Venezuelan officials call air force drills designed to
bolster its defense capabilities.
Russia also sent about 100 pilots and other military personnel.
The commander of Russia's strategic aircraft, General Sergei Kobylash,
said the drills "will help us understand better how Venezuela's pilots
are organized and trained."
Russia sent the planes after Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro held
talks in Moscow last week with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has
expressed support for the socialist government.
The United States has been fiercely critical of Maduro and what it calls
his rigged elections and corrupt policies that suppress human rights
and free speech.
The collapse in world energy prices has also left oil-rich Venezuela's
economy in tatters. Many basic foods and medicine are in severely short
supply and thousands of Venezuelans flee the country every day.
Maduro blames his country's problems on the United States and what he
says is its support for the opposition.
Putin Watches Debut of New Tu-160 Blackjack Supersonic Jet
