US Vice President JD Vance has attracted criticism after joking about the recent American strikes on Venezuelan boats, telling a crowd that he would not "go fishing" in the region. The remarks, made at an event in Michigan, drew an angry response online, with one user saying the vice president appeared "giddy about violence".
The strikes, ordered by President Donald Trump, have raised questions about their legality. In the latest attack, announced on Monday, Trump said three men were killed in a strike against what he described as "extraordinarily violent drug trafficking cartels and narcoterrorists". Earlier this month, the US said it had killed 11 others in an operation targeting Tren de Aragua, a gang now designated as a foreign terrorist organisation by the administration.
Speaking to supporters, Mr Vance recalled a conversation with Pete Hegseth, whom he described as Secretary of War, in which Mr Hegseth said drug boats had "completely stopped" entering the US. "I said, 'I know why,'" Mr Vance said, to laughter. "I would stop too. Hell, I wouldn't go fishing right now in that area of the world." He added that this showed what a military dedicated to its purpose and a commander-in-chief dedicated to the national good could achieve.
The comments were met with derision on social media. "This really isn't funny. Countries don't have the right to shoot down vessels in international waters without legal justification," wrote one user. Another said: "The Vice President of the United States doesn't even know if they are killing drug dealers or fishermen." Earlier this month, 25 Democratic senators, including Virginia's Tim Kaine, wrote to the White House demanding information, saying the administration had provided "no legitimate legal justification" for the first strike. Duke University law professor Charles Dunlap, a former senior Air Force lawyer, told Politico that the strikes could be legal but that a lack of transparency was unhelpful.
Following the first strike, Mr Trump wrote to Senator Chuck Grassley, notifying him of the action and stating that drug cartels posed a threat to national security. Venezuela's interior minister, Diosdado Cabello, has disputed the US account, saying that none of the 11 people killed belonged to Tren de Aragua and that they were not drug traffickers. He questioned how the US could determine whether drugs were on board and why the individuals were not arrested instead. The Independent has contacted Mr Vance's office for comment.
