U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Mike Waltz, addressed the Security Council today, stating that there is no war in Venezuela following the large-scale operations in the country and the capture and arrest of President Nicolás Maduro and the First Lady.
“We are not invading a country. This was a law enforcement operation in support of legitimate indictments that have existed for decades,” Waltz added, noting that there is precedent for this type of action, citing the U.S. capture of former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega in 1989.
“A similar action was taken in 1989 against Manuel Noriega. He was arrested, tried, sentenced in court, and served prison time in the United States and Panama,” he explained.
Waltz said that the overwhelming evidence of Maduro’s crimes will be “openly presented in U.S. court proceedings.”
“Maduro is not just an accused drug trafficker. He was a so-called illegitimate president. I want to reiterate that President Trump gave diplomacy a chance. He offered Maduro several opportunities to de-escalate tensions. Maduro refused to accept them,” the ambassador added.
According to him, dozens of countries do not recognize Maduro as president and the elections were a sham.
“More than 50 countries and organizations do not recognize Maduro as the elected leader of the country. The elections were a sham, and Maduro is not the President of the country,” the ambassador said.
Recall that the ousted president faces charges of drug-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy, and arms trafficking.
