Security Council Debates United States-Venezuela Standoff, as Calls Mount for Restraint

As the United States continues to interdict vessels off the coast of Venezuela, many speakers in the Security Council today urged restraint over escalation while regional States criticized the Governments of both countries and pleaded for adherence to international law.

Military actions are "further heightening tensions between the two countries", said Khaled Khiari, Assistant Secretary-General for the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific in the Departments of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs and Peace Operations. The United States' strikes on vessels alleged to be illegally carrying drugs in the Southern Caribbean and the Eastern Pacific have continued and, according to that country's authorities, 105 individuals have been killed in these strikes since 2 September. "The exact locations of these incidents have not been disclosed," he added.

Quoting a 31 October statement by the High Commissioner for Human Rights, he said: "The airstrikes by the [United States] on boats in the Caribbean and the Pacific - allegedly linked to drug-trafficking - violate international human-rights law." Further, countering the illicit trafficking of drugs across international borders is a law-enforcement matter, governed by the limits on lethal force set out in international human-rights law. The Commissioner, he added, has called for "prompt, independent and transparent investigations" into this matter.

He then detailed the recent chain of events that led to the United States' 10 December seizure of an oil tanker off Venezuela's coast, subsequent designation of that country's Government as a foreign terrorist organization and the imposition of sanctions. "In recent days, reports indicate that the Venezuelan navy has been escorting ships departing its ports with petroleum products," he reported, adding that public life in Venezuela has "become further militarized, while Venezuelans continue to face serious human-rights concerns and socioeconomic challenges".

Emphasizing that the Secretary-General stands ready to support all efforts at diplomatic engagement, he underscored: "Dialogue is the only viable path towards lasting peace and preventing further instability and human suffering."

Preserve Caribbean, Latin America 'Zone of Peace'

Many Council members agreed, with the representatives of Greece, Pakistan and Somalia warning against escalation that could spread instability across the region. Speakers, including the representatives of Algeria, Denmark and the Republic of Korea, also spotlighted the region's status as a "Zone of Peace" and urged that issues be addressed cooperatively and with restraint. The representative of Sierra Leone said that the UN Charter's rules regarding the use of force are "central to international stability and are intended to prevent escalation, miscalculation and illegal wars of choice".

Others also underlined the primacy of the rule of law. France's representative said that the fight against drug-trafficking must be conducted pursuant to international law. Similarly, the representative of Panama urged "States in the hemisphere" to cooperate in strengthening the fight against transnational organized crime by using "relevant international instruments". He added: "We would like to appeal for respect of the UN Charter." The representative of Slovenia, Council President for December, spoke in his national capacity to state that international law "serves as the anchor in addressing maritime security challenges".

Guyana's representative also cited international law, albeit in the breach. Venezuela, she stressed, has defied the International Court of Justice and purported to annex more than two thirds of her country's territory. Venezuela has also facilitated the transport of illegal drugs into Guyana while illegally mining and smuggling Guyanese gold. "Decisive action" is needed to counter drug-trafficking, she said, but this must be done collectively to create an environment in which the peoples of the region can pursue healthy, safe and prosperous lives. Relatedly, the representative of the United Kingdom underlined his country's commitment to achieving a peaceful, negotiated transition in Venezuela that ensures that "the will of all Venezuelans is respected".

United States Vows to Eradicate Maduro-funded Drug Cartels

The representative of the United States, meanwhile, said that his country will eradicate drug cartels, "which have operated with impunity in our hemisphere for far too long - and everyone knows it". 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", he declared that the United States "will do everything in our considerable power to protect our hemisphere, our borders and the American people".

However, the representative of the Russian Federation condemned the United States' attempt to "convince us all of the mendacious view" that the decision of that country's authorities alone is enough to "transform a sovereign State into a criminal enterprise". Warning of the catastrophic consequences of this "cowboy-like conduct", he said that this could become a template for future aggression against Latin American States. Similarly, China's representative opposed "all acts of unilateralism and bullying" and condemned external interference in Venezuela's internal affairs under any pretext.

Venezuela Alleges United States Pursuit of Oil, Mineral Wealth

"The United States seems to be destined by Providence to plague Latin America with misery in the name of liberty," said the representative of Venezuela as he quoted Simón Bolívar. Underscoring that it is not his country - but the current United States Government - that poses a threat, he stressed: "It's not drugs, it's not security, it's not freedom; it is oil, it's the mines, it's the land." War for oil, he added, is a death sentence - "the same one offered to Iraq, Syria, Libya and so many others". He therefore demanded that the Council condemn the ongoing aggression and ensure that the United States withdraws its military. He added: "The world knows that, if the scale of armed attacks continues, we will exercise, with all determination, our inalienable right to self-defence."

Stressing that the "irresponsible actions of the [United States] Government seem to have no limits", Cuba's representative said that Washington, D.C., "imposes the application of its laws outside its own territory and far from its coasts - where it has no jurisdiction - using assaults and the appropriation of assets". This, he said, forms part of a strategy of escalation aimed at preventing Venezuela from exercising its legitimate right to freely trade its resources with other countries. He added that this includes Cuba, which compounds the policy of "maximum pressure and suffocation" imposed by the United States on his country.

Nicaragua's representative, underscoring that Venezuela's sovereignty and territorial integrity must be upheld, said: "Their fight is our fight." He reaffirmed his country's solidarity with every Venezuelan resisting imperialism. "Their struggle for peace, justice and the right to build their own destiny is a cause we embrace," he said, denouncing "acts of modern piracy" that constitute a dangerous threat to peace and stability throughout the Latin American and Caribbean region. He added that his country expresses "unshakeable, brotherly and militant solidarity" with President Maduro's Government.

Mixed Regional Responses

Others did not. The representative of Argentina said that Nicolás Maduro's illegitimate regime has plunged Venezuela into a severe crisis that impacts the stability of the entire region. "Peace, freedom and democracy in Latin America have been put at risk," he stressed, stating that the Venezuelan people expressed their will at the polls in favour of Edmundo González Urrutia - whom Argentina recognizes as the President-elect. Also recalling that Venezuela has been suspended from the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR) since 2017 for violating the Ushuaia Protocol on Democratic Commitment, he urged the international community to speak out clearly against the Maduro regime.

Similarly, Paraguay's representative said that the Venezuelan people suffer as a "direct consequence" of Venezuela's Government - "and not external factors or third factors". Returning democracy to that country and allowing the legitimately elected authorities to assume their functions would be both an act of justice and a "fundamental step for stability in the region", he stressed. While adding that the fight against organized crime must be conducted within the bounds of international law, he underscored: "Venezuela is not a problem only for Venezuelans, but is - and remains - a problem for the entire world."

Yet, while Chile does not recognize the legitimacy of the Maduro regime, that country's representative rejected any armed activity that could risk regional peace and stability. She also underlined the imperative of respecting international law, which, Brazil's representative observed, includes the UN Charter's prohibition against the threat or use of force. The United States' activities are generating tensions in a region characterized by "stability and peaceful coexistence", added Colombia's representative, warning that military escalation not only heightens the risk of a broader conflict but also undermines collective efforts to prevent conflict and promote regional stability.

"History demonstrates that the threat or the use of force invariably leads to greater human suffering and the erosion of the international legal order," observed Mexico's representative. He underscored that, regardless of the country or region involved, "dialogue and negotiation are the only legitimate and effective ways of resolving - in the long run - existing differences". Urging all parties to act with restraint, he added: "It is exclusively up to the Venezuelan people to determine [their country's] political future."

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