Russia criticized this Thursday the accusations it considers unfounded by Washington against Venezuelaa country with which it is “side by side” in these difficult times.
“Without a doubt, this is another potential conflict under an invented pretext. It is evident that the fight against drug trafficking must be fought by other means and it is also evident that the accusations against the Venezuelan government and against Venezuela as a country are, in general, baseless,” said Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Riabkov.
Riabkov, quoted by the TASS agency, condemned the escalation of tensions in the region and assured that Moscow is “side by side” with Caracas in this “complicated situation.”
“And they know it,” he insisted.
The number two in Russian diplomacy affirmed that Moscow cooperates with Caracas in all areas, including security, and “this is no secret.”
Last week, the Kremlin expressed its confidence that the United States will not take measures that destabilize the situation “around Venezuela” and the Caribbean region, after the Pentagon announced the military operation Southern Spear against drug trafficking in Latin America.
The announcement of the operation by the US Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, occurred shortly after the arrival in the southern Caribbean of the United States’ largest and most sophisticated aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald Ford, which joined the deployment of destroyers or amphibious landing ships that Washington has maintained in the area since mid-August.
The military deployment has been paired with threats to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, whom the White House calls “illegitimate”, and with the destruction carried out by the Pentagon of around twenty boats in the waters of the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific (which has killed around 70 of their occupants), which Washington claims are boats transporting drugs to the United States.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov previously denied reports that Venezuela was requesting military aid from Moscow in the wake of escalating tensions with the United States.
Meanwhile, Maduro affirmed two weeks ago that Venezuela and Russia are “moving forward” in a military cooperation that he described as “serene and very beneficial” and that, he assured, “will continue.”
According to international media, the Maduro government would have asked Russia for help to reinforce the country’s air defenses, including 14 missile units, the modernization of Su-30MK2 aircraft and radars.
