Washington, Sept. 17 -- President Donald Trump on Tuesday morning said that the US military had sunk three suspected drug-smuggling vessels originating from Venezuela.

"We knocked off, actually, three boats, not two, but you saw two," Trump told reporters on the White House lawn as he prepared to leave for a state visit to London. "And the problem is there are very few boats out in the water. There's not a lot of boats out in the water. I can't imagine why," he added.

The president also urged Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro to "stop sending Tren de Aragua into the United States, stop sending drugs into the United States," and "stop sending people from your prisons into our country."

Trump's remarks followed his September 3 announcemen...