The United States administration is concerned about the large amount of weapons Venezuela has purchased recently, said in Santiago the Deputy Commander of the US Southern Command, General Glenn F. Spears.

"We are seriously concerned about this large amount of purchases and the kind of purchases Venezuela is making," Spears said in a news conference.

According to the US official, who is in Chile attending the International Air and Space Fair, "Venezuela has gone far beyond what the defense forces are," Efe quoted.

"I would ask what is the threat against their sovereignty they are envisaging, what makes them require this kind of purchases, and why do they need a reinforced military capacity," he stressed.

Spears said he personally did not understand what was the threat laying behind Venezuela's arms purchases, adding that in his view they seemed "a purely defensive formula for this nation."