UNITED NATIONS, Jan 04 (APP): The United Nations Security Council will convene on Monday to discuss US military operations in Venezuela that culminated in the capture of President Nicolas Maduro, a move UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called “a dangerous precedent.”
Colombia, backed by Russia and China, requested the emergency meeting of the 15-member Council, diplomats say.
“The presidency intends to hold the emergency meeting on Monday morning at 10 a.m. (8 pm PST),” said Khadija Ahmed, spokeswoman for the Somali Permanent Mission to the United Nations. Somalia holds the rotating presidency of the Security Council for the month of January.
The meeting will be held under the title: “Threats to International Peace and Security.”
The UN Security Council has met twice — in October and December — over the escalating tensions between the United States and Venezuela.
US President Donald Trump announced Saturday that Washington would run Venezuela “until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition,” though specifics of this plan remain unclear.
In a brief phone interview with The New York Times, Trump hailed the “brilliant” operation.
“A lot of good planning and a lot of great, great troops and great people,” the paper quoted Trump as saying.
Venezuela’s U.N. Ambassador Samuel Moncada wrote to the Security Council Saturday, calling the action “a colonial war aimed at destroying our republican form of government.” He accused the U.S. of violating the U.N. Charter, which prohibits members from using “the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state.”
The Trump administration has spent months targeting suspected drug trafficking vessels off Venezuela’s coast and throughout Latin America’s Pacific region. Last month, the U.S. intercepted two tankers carrying Venezuelan crude as part of an expanded blockade against vessels subject to American sanctions.
The US military action overnight constitutes “a dangerous precedent,” Guterres’ spokesperson Stephane Dujarric says in a statement.
“The Secretary-General continues to emphasize the importance of full respect — by all — of international law, including the UN Charter. He’s deeply concerned that the rules of international law have not been respected,” Dujarric said.