UN Security Council hears warnings over escalating US-Venezuela standoff

Briefing ambassadors on Tuesday, UN Assistant Secretary-General Khaled Khiari said that US military presence and operations off Venezuela’s coast have expanded since the Council last discussed the issue in October, further heightening tensions.

The United States has described its expanded military deployment as part of what it calls a “non-international armed conflict” against drug cartels and trafficking, Mr. Khiari said.

“President Donald Trump has stated that he is going to use ‘the full power of the United States to take on and eradicate these drug cartels no matter where they’re operating from’.”

The Venezuelan Government, including its Permanent Representative to the UN, has described the measures by the United States as “a serious threat to international peace and security”, Mr. Khiari continued.

In a 16 December letter to the Council President, Caracas accused Washington of violating “the principle prohibiting the threat or use of force in international relations.”

Strikes on alleged drug vessels

US strikes on vessels allegedly carrying drugs in the Southern Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific have continued, Mr. Khiari said, citing US authorities who reported that 105 individuals have been killed in these strikes since 2 September.

The exact locations were not disclosed, with US officials stating that they occurred in “international waters” or the US Southern Command’s area of responsibility.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has warned that the airstrikes violate international human rights law, Mr. Khiari added, stressing that countering drug trafficking is a law-enforcement matter governed by strict limits on the use of lethal force.

Tensions continue to rise

Mr. Khiari further informed the Council that the US designated the Cartel de los Soles a “foreign terrorist organization” and declared Venezuelan airspace “closed in its entirety”– most that led many international airlines to suspend flights.

Washington also announced that it has since seized oil tankers, imposed new sanctions and ordered what President Trump described as “a total and complete blockade” of sanctioned oil shipments.

Venezuela, in turn, denounced these actions as a “unilateral naval blockade” and a violation of international law, and in recent days, its navy has reportedly begun escorting petroleum tankers.

Dialogue the only viable path

Mr. Khiari reiterated the United Nations’ position on the need for all Member States to respect international law, in particular the UN Charter, and to exercise restraint and de-escalate tensions to preserve regional stability.

The Secretary-General stands ready to support all efforts at diplomatic engagement, he added, including through his good offices, should both parties request it.

“Dialogue is the only viable path toward lasting peace and preventing further instability and human suffering,” Mr. Khiari said.

Council members urge restraint

In the ensuing debate, Security Council members and participating countries expressed concern over the situation, with many warning against escalation that could destabilize the region.

Michael Imran Kanu, the Ambassador of Sierra Leone, stated that the UN Charter’s rules on the use of force are “central to international stability” and intended to prevent escalation, miscalculation and illegal wars of choice.

French Ambassador and Deputy Permanent Representative Jay Dharmadhikari noted that efforts to combat drug trafficking must be conducted in accordance with international law. Eloy Alfaro de Alba, the Ambassador of Panama, urged all States to cooperate using “relevant international instruments” and appealed for respect for the UN Charter.

Regional participants offered contrasting views, with some voicing solidarity with Venezuela against external pressure – “their fight is our fight,” said Jaime Hermida Castillo, the Ambassador of Nicaragua. Others, however, warned that the Venezuelan people suffer as a “direct consequence” of the Government, “and not external factors or third factors,” according to Miguel Ricardo Candia Ibarra, the representative of Paraguay.

United States vows to eradicate cartels

US Ambassador Michael Waltz stressed that his country will eradicate drug cartels, “which have operated with impunity in our hemisphere for far too long.”

Sanctions will be enforced to the maximum possible extent to “deprive [Venezuelan President Nicolás] Maduro of the resources he uses to fund the Cartel [de los Soles]”.

This, he added, includes profits from the sale of oil, as these enable “his fraudulent claim to power and his narco-terrorist activities”.

Underscoring that the “illegitimate Maduro regime” poses an “extraordinary threat to our hemisphere’s peace and stability”, Mr. Waltz declared that the United States “will do everything in our considerable power to protect our hemisphere, our borders and the American people.”

Venezuela alleges US pursues oil

“The United States seems to be destined by Providence to plague Latin America with misery in the name of liberty,” said Samuel Moncada, Ambassador of Venezuela as he quoted Simón Bolívar, the 19th-century Latin American independence leader and statesman.

Underscoring that it is not his country – but the current US Government – that poses a threat, he added: “It’s not drugs, it’s not security, it’s not freedom – it is oil, it’s the mines, it’s the land.”  

Mr. Moncada demanded that the Security Council condemn the ongoing aggression and ensure that the United States withdraws its military.

“The world knows that, if the scale of armed attacks continues, we will exercise, with all determination, our inalienable right to self-defence,” he said.

Click here for additional coverage of the meeting from UN Meetings Coverage.