TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said on Wednesday that US President Donald Trump has unveiled the true motive behind the South American country with his claim that Venezuela has stolen "oil, land, and other assets" from the US.
As reported by CNN, Maduro said Trump's claim reveals that the US is actually seeking regime change alongside the ownership of Venezuelan territory and resources.
Previously, the US claimed the increase in its naval power near the country was part of the effort to combat drug trafficking.
"It is simply a warmongering and colonialist pretense, and we have said so many times, and now everyone sees the truth. The truth has been revealed," Maduro said in his speech in Caracas on Wednesday.
"The aim in Venezuela is a regime change to impose a puppet government that wouldn’t last 47 hours, that would hand over the Constitution, sovereignty, and all the wealth, turning Venezuela into a colony. It will simply never happen," he asserted.
Trump's Claim
On Tuesday, Trump wrote on Truth Social that the expansion in military power around Venezuela will escalate until the country returns to the US “the oil, land, and other assets that they previously stole from us.”
Trump reiterated to reporters on Wednesday that Venezuela has illegally taken "energy rights" and that the US wants it back.
“We’re getting land, oil rights, whatever we had. They took it away because we had a president that maybe wasn’t watching. But they’re not going to do that. We want it back. They took our oil rights. We had a lot of oil there. As you know, they threw our companies out and we want it back.”
Venezuela nationalized its oil sector in the 1970s. Prior to that, American companies had a much larger presence in the country's oil fields.
Trump has repeatedly warned that the US could launch an attack on Venezuela soon, saying that any country smuggling drugs into the US is "subject to attack," indicating that neighboring Colombia could be one of them.
In his Wednesday speech, Maduro called on Colombia to unite with Venezuela and defend the sovereignty of both countries.
UN Secretary-General Phone Call
Maduro also criticized Trump's comments in a phone call with UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Wednesday, the Venezuelan government said.
"President Maduro stressed that such statements must be categorically rejected by the United Nations system, as they constitute a direct threat to sovereignty, international law, and peace," the Venezuelan government said in a statement.
Maduro claimed that recent US actions against Venezuela are part of “diplomacy of barbarism” that he believes contradicts the principle of international coexistence.
Guterres's office later confirmed that the phone call had taken place, stating that the secretary-general had "reaffirmed the United Nations’ position on the need for member states to respect international law, particularly the United Nations Charter, exert restraint and de-escalate tensions to preserve regional stability.”
National Defense
Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez stated that his country will defend its homeland by all means in response to the US government's decision to block all oil tanker ships entering and leaving Venezuela.
Speaking on the government television station VTV on Wednesday as quoted by Anadolu, Padrino Lopez said the national armed forces will protect all of Venezuela's legitimate rights in its airspace and territorial waters without being provoked.
“I am referring to the country in North America and to its president: we will defend the integrity of the homeland at any cost,” he said.
Padrino Lopez described the order to block Venezuelan oil tanker ships as a clear violation of the United Nations Charter.
“For this reason, these actions amount to an open act of aggression, and we are declaring this to the entire world,” he said.
He added that the multilateral international organization must reflect and take action on what he considers to be irrational and aggressive behavior, as it not only endangers Venezuela but also the Latin American and Caribbean region and global energy stability.
No Free Oil
Meanwhile, Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez responded to the issue in a statement posted on social media. She emphasized that no foreign power will be given oil, free or stolen alike.
Rodriguez stressed that Venezuelan oil belongs to the Venezuelan people.
“We will continue to be free and independent in our energy relations. Together with President Nicolas Maduro, we will continue to defend the homeland," she said.
Venezuela accused Washington of piracy after a Venezuelan oil tanker was seized off the country's coast on December 10 and sent an official letter on the matter to the UN Security Council.
Read: Why US Giant Chevron, Not China, May Save Oil-Rich Venezuela
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