Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro announced that he remains willing to hold direct talks with US authorities, provided they take place “on the basis of respect.”
“Our message is one of peace, love, and understanding,” he declared during a cabinet meeting held on Friday, December 26, which was broadcast on state media. “And if, in the US, someone ever decides, based on respect, to engage in dialogue and move beyond failed [regime change] projects that have persisted for over 25 years, here there will always be a president who represents his people, ready to extend a hand and look for paths to peace, cooperation, and prosperity. This had to be said, and it has been said.”
The Venezuelan president urged US media outlets not to be influenced by the lobbies trying to impose a colonial model of domination and steal Venezuela’s natural resources, and denounced sectors of the White House for creating extremist opposition figures to further that objective. At the same time, he highlighted his nation’s active and victorious resistance against the multifaceted war waged by the US regime.
He stressed the importance of the US media maintaining its independence. He emphasized not giving in to “so many lobbies,” among which he mentioned “bondholders, oil companies, Miami” and “corrupt Venezuelans who fled to Miami,” pointing out that these groups “pay for articles” in the US press.
Venezuela will not be subjected to a model of colonial and slave-owning domination
In the same vein of reaffirming Venezuela’s sovereignty, the president noted that “it is impossible for sectors of power in the US to fabricate a virtual reality and impose a model of colonial and slave domination on Bolívar’s Venezuela in order to steal its natural resources.”
“It is ‘impossible’ because here there is a people in the territory, in the communities, in the universities, in the factories and in the barracks, a people that has demonstrated sufficient capacity to lead our country on the right path, at a good pace, with good judgment,” he said.
“Maduro has been accused of everything,” he added. “But it is not Maduro, it is the oil they want. It is not Maduro, it is the gold. The rare earth minerals. It is not Maduro, it is the country’s natural wealth. They cannot say that I have weapons of mass destruction, because nobody would believe it, even if they said it a thousand times. They cannot say Maduro has biological or chemical weapons. They cannot say Maduro is building a nuclear bomb. So, they keep repeating four or five lies constantly.”
“It is not about Maduro. It is about a republic with a magnificent history, a republic which has been defended and will continue to be defended by its people, because what we want is peace, progress, improvement, advancement, prosperity,” he continued. “As the Liberator Simón Bolívar said, what we want is the greatest social happiness on firm foundations for our people.”
Adding that this statement does not refer only to the current situation, President Maduro spoke about the unsuccessful attempts that Washington has undertaken during the last 25 years to bring about a “regime change” in Venezuela, first against former President Hugo Chávez, and from 2013 onwards, against himself, which include political, financial and diplomatic support for figures of the far-right opposition.
“The failed models of Leopoldo López, Julio Borges, [Juan] Guaidó, and [María Corina] Machado will never take over this country. Venezuela will continue on its course with its plan, its leadership, and its people, achieving great things in the years to come,” he emphasized.
Threats against Maduro
Some days ago, amid Washington’s unprecedented aggression against Caracas, US President Donald Trump declared that he planned to launch a ground attack not only against Venezuela, but against any place from which “drugs are coming.” “Anywhere drugs are coming from. Anywhere. Not just Venezuela,” he said.
When asked if Maduro should take Trump’s threat of ground attacks seriously, Trump responded that the Venezuelan leader “can do whatever he wants.” “If he wants to do something, if he tries to act tough, it will be the last time he can do it,” he said, directly threatening the life of the Venezuelan president.
US-imposed puppet governmentPresident Maduro then decried that the real objective of the United States is “regime change” to seize Venezuela’s immense oil and gas wealth.
The Venezuelan president said that the White House was attempting to orchestrate a regime change in Venezuela and “impose a puppet government that would not last 47 hours.” “It is a warmongering and colonialist scheme,” he declared. “We have said it many times, and now everyone sees the truth. The truth has been revealed: the US intends to change the government in Venezuela to impose a puppet … a government that would hand over the Constitution, sovereignty, and all the wealth, turning Venezuela into a colony. Simply put, that is not going to happen.”
Venezuela under siege by the US
• Since August, the US has maintained its largest military deployment in decades in the Caribbean, with a sustained presence of naval and air assets. Initially, Washington justified this operation under the pretext of combating drug trafficking, blaming, without presenting evidence, the government of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro for contributing to this crime.
• As the months passed, Washington’s official narrative underwent a predictable shift. Just as the Venezuelan government had denounced, the supposed focus on drug trafficking gave way to a discourse openly centered on the control and illegal appropriation of Venezuelan oil, in a context of increasing economic pressure and threats of use of force.
• In recent weeks, the US has seized at least two oil tankers, in an act denounced by Caracas as theft and piracy.
• The US military operation has had deadly consequences. More than 100 people have died as a result of over 20 bombings of small boats in the Caribbean and Pacific, without the US publicly demonstrating any link between these vessels and illicit activities.
• On Tuesday, the United Nations Security Council held an emergency meeting, following a request from Venezuela, which denounced the escalation of US aggression.
• Venezuela’s Permanent Representative to the UN Samuel Moncada denounced the US actions as representing “the recolonization of Venezuela, the reconquest of the entire continent. We are facing a massive violation of all international law and a morally reprehensible and indecent proposal that we cannot accept.”
• The Venezuelan position was openly supported by Russia, whose permanent representative to the UN, Vasily Nebenzia, warned that Moscow has “every reason to believe that what the US is currently doing against Venezuela is not an isolated action: it is an intervention that could become a model for future military actions against other countries in Latin America” and other parts of the world.
• In addition, China, Iran, Colombia, Brazil, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Cuba have openly expressed their support for Venezuela and regional stability.
Somalia’s integrity
On another international topic, Venezuela issued on Saturday, December 27, a statement declaring its recognition of the sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity of Somalia within its internationally accepted borders. The statement categorically rejects any unilateral action aimed at recognizing separatist entities within Somali territory.
The statement comes after the prime minister of “Israel,” Benjamin Netanyahu, recognized Somaliland on Friday—labeled by analysts as a new attempt to destabilize the West Asia – North Africa region—showing his disrespect for international rule of law.
The statement, published by Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yván Gil on social media, states that Venezuela is acting in accordance with its sovereign foreign policy. Committed to the principles of international law and the Charter of the United Nations, Venezuela reiterates that Somalia’s territorial integrity is inviolable and constitutes the foundation for peace in the Horn of Africa.
Furthermore, Caracas adheres to the UN Security Council resolutions and the African Union decisions that support the sovereignty of the Eastern African nation.
On Friday, the African Union expressed its rejection of Israel’s diplomatic recognition of Somaliland.
(Alba Ciudad) with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SC
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