As US warships arrive in the region in a alleged operation against Latin American drug cartels, Maduro said on Thursday, saying that his nation was well-equipped to defend its sovereignty.
“We are stronger than yesterday,” the statement read. According to the state-run Venezuela News Agency, Maduro stated in a speech to troops that “we are more prepared to defend peace, sovereignty, and territorial integrity”.
As Samuel Moncada, Venezuela’s ambassador to the UN, spoke out against the US military’s expansion, Maduro made his comment.
After meeting with Guterres, Moncada said to reporters, “It’s a massive propaganda operation to justify what the experts refer to as kinetic action, which means military action against a nation that is a sovereign and independent nation and poses no threat to anyone.”
The ambassador claimed that they are sending a nuclear submarine to combat drug trafficking, which is absurd.
In response to concerns that some Venezuelans were taking part in large-scale drug operations, Admiral Daryl Claude, the US Navy’s chief of naval operations, confirmed earlier on Thursday that US warships were being deployed to waters off South America.
A US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told the Reuters news agency that seven US warships, as well as one fast attack submarine with nuclear power, were either in the area or expected to be there in the coming week.
In a move that was launched after the Trump administration accused Maduro and other members of his government of having connections to cocaine trafficking, more than 4,500 US service members, including about 2,200 Marines, were reportedly board the ships.
Venezuela has launched a campaign to recruit thousands of militia members to strengthen its domestic defenses in response to US threats by sending warships and drones to patrol its coastline.
In an effort to combat drug trafficking and other organized crime, Caracas has also deployed 15, 000 troops to Colombia’s borders.
Maduro thanked Colombia for sending an additional 25, 000 military personnel to the Colombia-Venezuela border to combat “narco-terrorist gangs,” according to Venezuela News Agency on Thursday.
Trump’s threats to Venezuela have focused primarily on its powerful criminal gangs, particularly the notorious cocaine-trafficking Cartel de los Soles, which the Trump administration has labeled a terrorist organization and accused Maduro of leading.
Source: Aljazeera
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