Venezuela wants to work with other South American countries to prevent US attack, Maduro says

CARACAS - President Nicolás Maduro has announced that Venezuela will work with other South American countries to prevent a war in the region that he says the United States plans to unleash under the pretext of fighting drugs. As TASS news agency reported, Maduro said that even though Washington officially says it does not want to get involved in any military conflict, "behind the scenes, an armed intervention is being prepared and must be averted."

Venezuelan president says US administration wants to take action against his country "under the false pretext of fighting drug trafficking"because she cannot be accused of possessing weapons of mass destruction. "Venezuela is completely free of drug trafficking, coca plantations and cocaine production," Maduro said in a speech broadcast by state television Venezolana de Televisión.

The situation escalated after Caracas asked the UN Security Council to declare recent US strikes on Venezuelan ships off the Caribbean coast illegal and in violation of international law, according to Reuters. Sources close to the UN confirmed that Washington defends the strikes as "operations against drug cartels"while Venezuela claims it was "aggression against a sovereign state".

Reuters also reported that the United States had recently authorised the CIA to carry out covert operations on Venezuelan territory, ostensibly to prevent an increase in migration and curb drug trafficking. On this occasion, President Trump declared that Venezuela is "a major transit hub for the Latin American narco-business". Caracas called it a "political lie" a "an attempt to justify military intervention."

Maduro is trying to win the support of other Latin American countries. According to Tass, he is preparing a series of bilateral talks to create "protection mechanism"that would prevent foreign intervention. "Caracas will work with other South American nations to prevent the war the US wants to unleash in the region," said the President.

Meanwhile, the US side has increased its troop presence in the Caribbean and expanded operations against drug routes. Reuters reported that this is the largest military build-up in the region since 2020. Venezuela has responded by declaring an alert and mobilising its armed forces and civilian militias, particularly in the border region with Colombia.

According to the Russian news agency TASS, Caracas is also deepening its strategic cooperation with Russia. In October, the two countries signed an agreement on "defence and technology cooperation"which Moscow has described as "a contribution to stability in Latin America."

Meanwhile, a UN panel of experts has warned that US strikes in waters off Venezuela may constitute "violation of international law" and potentially "extremely serious abuse of force."

Venezuela thus appears to be moving towards a role as a regional coordinator of resistance to any military intervention from outside. While the United States stresses that its operations are purely anti-drug, Caracas and its allies see this as a cover for attempts at regime change. South American governments, meanwhile, are under pressure - whether to side with Washington or with Venezuela's appeal to "defending the sovereignty of the continent."

The current situation thus remains extremely tense and, according to observers, could determine what the geopolitical map of South America will look like in the coming years.

gnews.cz - GH