Maduro condemns escalation of US actions in Caribbean

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has sent a letter to heads of state of countries in the Latin American and Caribbean region, denouncing the escalation of U.S. aggressions against Venezuela and their impact on the region, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil said Monday, reported Xinhua.

"I am writing to alert you to an escalation of extremely serious aggressions by the government of the United States of America, whose effects transcend my country," Gil said as he read the letter at the Venezuelan foreign ministry headquarters.

The letter recounts events since August, when the United States "ordered the largest naval and air deployment in the Caribbean Sea," including a nuclear submarine, as part of a purported anti-drug operation.

"This action constitutes a direct threat of the use of force," Gil read, adding that it violates the UN Charter.

"Venezuela has not committed any act that justifies this military intimidation," Maduro wrote in the letter.

Between Sept. 2 and Dec. 18, U.S. forces carried out 28 missile strikes against civilian vessels in the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean, resulting in the extrajudicial execution of 104 people, the letter said.

The United States recently seized two ships carrying some 4 million barrels of Venezuelan oil and announced an "absolute" naval blockade against tankers transporting Venezuelan crude oil, the letter said, adding that "these actions constitute acts of piracy" under international law.

The letter reaffirmed Venezuela's commitment to peace, saying the country "declares with absolute clarity that it is prepared to defend its sovereignty, territorial integrity and resources, in accordance with international law."

Maduro warned that these attacks will impact "the supply of oil and energy, increase instability in international markets, and damage the economies of Latin America, the Caribbean, and the world."

The Venezuelan president concluded with an appeal for condemning the acts of aggression, piracy and extrajudicial executions, and demanded the immediate cessation of military deployment.