Venezuela’s armed forces have warned they will not back a government that “kneels to the United States.” Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez said it during a visit to a military hospital in Caracas on Friday.
Padrino Lopez told reporters that the Bolivarian National Armed Forces would reject any leader that is “submissive” to Washington’s interests. The minister also reminded Venezuelans that some opposition figures have urged foreign intervention and sanctions against the country.
While acknowledging the opposition’s role in a democracy, he warned of U.S. threats, especially after recent U.S. military actions in the Caribbean. Padrino Lopez said these moves have scared local fishermen and called the situation the “greatest threat in a century.” Despite the tension, he emphasized Venezuela’s desire for peace: “We want peace.”
Earlier that day, Venezuela slammed new U.S. sanctions on Colombian President Gustavo Petro and close aides. Caracas called the sanctions “illegal” and “neocolonial.” The Foreign Ministry said the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control had violated international law and the United Nations Charter. It added that the actions were political aggression and had been condemned by the UN General Assembly and the Human Rights Council.
Venezuela accused Washington of trying to criminalise Petro and destabilise Colombia to undermine Latin American and Caribbean sovereignty. The government urged the region’s leaders and peoples to unite against these coercive measures.
The U.S. Treasury’s sanctions list now includes Petro, his wife Verónica Alcocer, their son Nicolás Petro, and Colombia’s Interior Minister Armando Benedetti, with allegations of links to narcotics trafficking.
Source: ianslive
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