The Russian government expressed its “full support” for Venezuela on Monday as the country faces a crisis Blockade of oil tankers sanctioned by US forces used in the Caribbean.
Moscow’s promise came on the eve of a meeting of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Tuesday focused on the growing crisis between Caracas and Washington.
In a telephone conversation, foreign ministers from allied countries sharply criticized the US actions, which included attacks on suspected drug smuggling ships and most recently the seizure of two oil tankers. A third ship is being pursued, a US official confirmed.
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“The ministers expressed deep concern about the escalation of Washington’s actions in the Caribbean, which could have serious consequences for the region and endanger international shipping,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said of the phone call between Sergei Lavrov and his Venezuelan counterpart Yvan Gil.
“The Russian side reiterated Your full support and solidarity with the leadership and the Venezuelan people in the current context,” he added in a statement.
Since September, U.S. forces have carried out attacks on ships that Washington claims, without providing evidence, are smuggling drugs in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. More than 100 people died – some of them are fishermen, according to their families and governments.
US President Donald Trump also announced a blockade of “sanctioned oil tankers” traveling to and from Venezuela on December 16. Trump claims that Caracas under President Maduro uses oil money to finance “drug terrorism, human trafficking, murders and kidnappings.”
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Trump too accused Venezuela of keeping “all of our oil,” in an apparent reference to the nationalization of the country’s oil sector.
Caracas, in turn, fears that Washington is seeking regime change and accused Washington of “International piracy“.
The Moscow statement said Lavrov and Gil were united in their call to “coordinate their actions on the international stage, especially at the United Nations, to ensure respect for state sovereignty and non-interference in internal affairs.”
Russia and China, another ally of Venezuela, supported Caracas’ request for a Security Council meeting the UN to discuss what they called:current US aggression“.
On Telegram, Venezuela’s Gil said he and Lavrov discussed “the aggressions and blatant violations of international law being committed in the Caribbean: attacks on ships, extrajudicial killings and illegal acts of piracy by the US government.” He added that Lavrov had claimed this Moscow’s “full support in the face of hostilities against our country.”
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Last week, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio rejected Moscow’s stated support for Caracas. He said Washington was “not worried about escalation with Russia over Venezuela” because “They have their hands full in Ukraine“
Gil also read on state television Monday a letter signed by Maduro and addressed to U.N. member countries warning that the U.S. blockade “will affect oil and energy supplies worldwide.”
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