Pakistan: US action in Venezuela sets precedent.
Pakistan’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Usman Jadoon, said in a speech at an emergency meeting of the Security Council on developments in Venezuela: “We warn that unilateral actions in Venezuela will have ‘unforeseen consequences.”
He stressed that lasting solutions to political disputes can only be achieved through peaceful means.
The Pakistani diplomat added that the unilateral actions of the United States are setting a “dangerous precedent,” so the way forward must be based on dialogue and diplomacy.
He said: “Unilateral military action (by the United States) is contrary to the principles of the UN Charter and the doctrine of sovereign immunity.”
The Deputy Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations emphasized: “The UN Charter obliges us to refrain from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state. The UN Charter also obliges member states to sovereign equality, non-interference in the internal affairs of others, and the peaceful settlement of international disputes.”
Osman Jadon expressed hope that the Latin American and Caribbean region, as a zone of peace, will remain free from conflict and confrontation and continue its movement toward advanced regional cooperation and greater prosperity for its people.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife were kidnapped on Saturday morning, January 13, 2021, following a US airstrike in Caracas and transferred to New York for trial. Following this action, US President Donald Trump said that the United States would govern Venezuela, at least temporarily.
Maduro appeared in court on Monday night with his wife, Celia Flores, and Judge Alvin Hellerstein read the indictment, accusing Maduro of involvement in narco-terrorism.
Maduro, 63, who appeared in court for the first time since his arrest by the US, said: “I am innocent. I have committed no crime.”
He added that he was arrested at his home in Caracas and that he still considers himself the president of Venezuela.