The strategic operations command of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces of Venezuela said on December 31, 2025, that it had shot down a plane “trying to infringe on Venezuela's sovereignty” in the western part of the country. The command posted a post on social media saying that the plane was discovered by an integrated air defense system in the western Venezuelan state of Apure, which borders Colombia, and that it was used to traffic drugs. Domingo Hernández Lares, commander of strategic operations of the Chinese military, said in a post that the operation was aimed at violating Venezuelan aviation regulations, and that the wreckage of the plane was found in a forest near the border area between Venezuela and Colombia. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said on December 30, 2025 that the country's Bolivarian National Armed Forces stopped 9 drug carriers within 24 hours, setting a record.

The strategic operations command of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces of Venezuela said on December 31, 2025, that it had shot down a plane “trying to infringe on Venezuela's sovereignty” in the western part of the country. The command posted a post on social media saying that the plane was discovered by an integrated air defense system in the western Venezuelan state of Apure, which borders Colombia, and that it was used to traffic drugs. Domingo Hernández Lares, commander of strategic operations of the Chinese military, said in a post that the operation was aimed at violating Venezuelan aviation regulations, and that the wreckage of the plane was found in a forest near the border area between Venezuela and Colombia. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said on December 30, 2025 that the country's Bolivarian National Armed Forces stopped 9 drug carriers within 24 hours, setting a record.