A Russian air force plane yesterday landed at Venezuela’s main airport, according to a Reuters witness and a website that tracks plane movements, three months after a similar arrival spurred a war of words between Washington and Moscow. Two Russian air force planes landed in Venezuela in March carrying Russian defence officials and 100 troops, leading the US to accuse Russia of “reckless escalation” of the situation in the struggling South American nation. An Ilyushin 62 jet with tail number RA-86496 was yesterday parked at Maiquetia International Airport. That tail number is registered to a Russian Air Force jet, according to website Flightradar24, and matches the tail number of the plane that arrived in March. US President Donald Trump in March ordered Russia to remove all troops from Venezuela, while Russia’s foreign ministry said the planes were only carrying specialists who were servicing arms sales contracts. Venezuela’s information ministry and Russia’s defence ministry did not immediately reply to requests for comment.
