“On December 15, 2025, Ukraine opened a new chapter in naval warfare by using an underwater drone to strike a Russian submarine in the defended port of Novorossiysk. It was the first time a UUV had ever been used in a strike. The target was a Kilo-class submarine, valued at roughly $500 million.

UUVs operating in the Florida Straits and near the Panama Canal would put at risk the commercial arteries that carry half of American trade and the sea lanes that sustain military power projection. That is the kind of threat that changes posture overnight.

Venezuela has established a pattern of accepting foreign-enabled drone production, electronic warfare support, and strategic naval deployments. The regime has built the infrastructure (ports, coastal access, cartel logistics, sanctions evasion channels) that would support a UUV program. If Iran is willing to transfer drone manufacturing capability and deploy seabase ships into the Atlantic, the step to UUVs is not a leap. It is an extension of what is already underway. And it is the extension that would explain why Washington responded the way it did.”