Cuba has accused the United States of pushing towards the violent removal of Venezuela’s leadership, warning that the growing deployment of US military forces in the Caribbean represents an “exaggerated and aggressive” threat to regional stability.
“We appeal to the people of the United States to stop this madness”, Cuba’s Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said in a statement on Tuesday.
He cautioned that “the US government could cause an incalculable number of deaths and create a scenario of violence and instability in the hemisphere that would be unimaginable”, adding that such actions would breach international law as well as the United Nations charter.
The condemnation comes as US President Donald Trump weighs additional actions against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, with the White House refusing to rule out more forceful measures.
The Trump administration has repeatedly accused Maduro of leading a campaign to smuggle drugs into the US, even though it has not provided any evidence to back its claim.
Over the past two months, the US has bombed 21 boats in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, killing at least 83 people. It claimed that these boats were involved in drug trafficking, but authorities have released no evidence showing narcotics were present, and legal scholars argue that even if drugs were found, the attacks would likely still violate international law.