US covert actions ‘violate Venezuela’s sovereignty’: UN experts
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US strike on a suspected drug-trafficking boat off the coast of Venezuela in a screengrab from a video posted by US President Donald Trump on Truth Social.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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GENEVA – United Nations (UN) rights experts warned on Oct 21 that the United States’ covert actions and threats of using armed force against Caracas “violate Venezuela’s sovereignty and the UN Charter”.
US President Donald Trump has waged a military campaign that he says is aimed at choking the flow of drugs from Latin America to the US.
“These actions also violate the fundamental international obligations not to intervene in the domestic affairs or threaten to use armed force against another country,” the three independent rights experts said.
“These moves are an extremely dangerous escalation with grave implications for peace and security in the Caribbean region.”
At least six vessels, most of them speedboats, have been targeted by US strikes
“Even if such allegations were substantiated, the use of lethal force in international waters without proper legal basis violates the international law of the sea and amounts to extrajudicial executions,” said the experts, who were mandated by the UN Human Rights Council but who do not speak on behalf of the UN.
At the same time, they said, groups like Tren de Aragua, which Mr Trump has labelled a “terrorist” organisation, are not attacking the US, meaning that Washington cannot invoke the “right to self-defence” under international law.
“Preparations for covert or direct military action against another sovereign state constitute an even graver breach of the UN Charter,” said the experts, including the special rapporteurs on extrajudicial executions and on protecting human rights while countering terrorism.
Mr Trump has indicated that he authorised covert CIA operations
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro says Washington is plotting to oust him.
“The long history of external interventions in Latin America must not be repeated,” the experts said.
“The international community must stand firm in defending the rule of law, dialogue, and the peaceful settlement of disputes.” AFP
