The Venezuelan government said a US destroyer intercepted and detained a Venezuelan tuna fishing vessel for eight hours in the country's exclusive economic zone on Wednesday, Reuters reported.
In a statement read by Venezuelan Foreign Minister Ivan Gil, the government said the fishing vessel had been seized and detained illegally and in a hostile manner. It noted that the Venezuelan vessel's crew consisted of nine ordinary fishermen and were harmless.
Tensions between Washington and Caracas are escalating. Last week, a US military strike in the Caribbean killed 11 Venezuelans and sank their vessel, which the administration of US President Donald Trump said was carrying illegal drugs, Reuters reports.
The Trump administration has provided scant information about last week's attack, despite demands from members of the US Congress for the government to justify the act.
Venezuelan authorities said none of the 11 killed were members of the "Tren de Aragua" gang, as the US had claimed.
US officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the case from yesterday.
The Venezuelan government said the US ship was the destroyer "Jason Dunham" (Jason Dunham - DDG-109), "armed with powerful cruise missiles and manned by highly specialized marines". It demanded that the US immediately cease attacking vessels, which it said put at risk "the security and peace of the Caribbean".