Russia sparks new WW3 fears with Kremlin 'ready to act' as Trump beefs up navy presence

Russia has pledged to be ready to support Venezuela (Image: Getty)

Russia has pledged to be "ready" to help Venezuela as Donald Trump continues to reinforce the US' military presence near the South American nation in what the White House has framed as a war on drugs. Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergey Lavrov said the Kremlin is "ready to fully act within the framework of the obligations that were mutually stipulated in this agreement with our Venezuelan friends", after the countries signed a strategic partnership in May.

While the partnership has not come into effect yet, Lavrov said it is "getting close". Three months after it was signed, Venezuela opened a factory to make Kalashnikov munitions, and last month, a sanctioned Russian cargo aircraft known for transporting defence equipment landed in Venezuela. Lavrov added: "Now it is at the final stage of ratification. It states the need to continue our security cooperation, including military-technical cooperation."

Russia and Venezuela have signed a strategic partnership. (Image: Getty)

Alexei Zhuravlev, who sits on a Russian parliamentary defence committee, said there was nothing stopping Moscow from sending Venezuela "new developments".

He said: "We supply the country with virtually the entire range of weapons, from small arms to aircraft ... The Americans could be in for some surprises."

While Venezuela has not yet requested military assistance or Russian weapons, a senior Russian official suggested that Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missiles could be sent over.

This comes amid the US' increasing military presence near the South American country as the White House claims to be cracking down on drug smuggling.

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On Tuesday, the world's largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, arrived in waters near Venezuela with three other warships. Thousands of additional personnel are due to accompany them.

Since the start of September, US strikes on alleged drug boats in the Southern Caribbean and eastern Pacific have killed at least 75 people.

In response, defence minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez mobilised 200,000 soldiers across Venezuela to mitigate the "threat" from the US.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro also ordered security and intelligence forces to stop sharing communication with the US.