South African political parties condemn US strike on Venezuela
Cape Town, South Africa (PANA) – South African opposition parties have joined the chorus of condemnation over the US administration’s military strike against Venezuela and the reported capture of President Nicolás Maduro.
US President Donald Trump made the announcement on social media, and the US Attorney General said Mr. Maduro and his wife would face “the full wrath of American justice on American soil, in American courts”, based on a 2020 narcoterrorism indictment during the first Trump administration, in New York.
Chrispin Phiri, the spokesperson for the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO), described the US’s actions as a blatant violation of the United Nations Charter.
The opposition Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) labelled the strike as the most blatant act of imperial aggression in the Western Hemisphere in decades.
“Let it be clear to the world that this is not a lawful operation under international law, nor is it an act of self-defence. It is a naked exercise of unilateral military power that tramples on the sovereignty of a nation and sets a dangerous and destabilising precedent. If allowed to stand, it signals that any powerful state may invade, bomb, abduct, and remove the leadership of sovereign countries without consent, oversight, or legitimacy,” said EFF spokesperson Sinawo Thambo.
The uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) also condemned the military assault of the Trump Administration. “These actions constitute nothing less than a full-scale act of war, an illegal invasion of a sovereign state, and a flagrant violation of the United Nations Charter, international law, and the most basic principles governing relations between states. They represent an extreme escalation of long-standing United States hostility toward Venezuela and expose, with brutal clarity, the true nature of Washington's foreign policy: militarised coercion in the service of resource control and imperial domination,” said MKP spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela.
African Union (AU) and the UN Secretary-General have also expressed concern about developments in Venezuela following the capture of its President, Nicolás Maduro, by the US on Saturday.
The AU in a statement in a statement issued on Saturday, reaffirmed its “steadfast commitment to the fundamental principles of international law, including respect for the sovereignty of States, their territorial integrity, and the right of peoples to self-determination, as enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations”.
The AU underscored the importance of dialogue, peaceful settlement of disputes, and respect for constitutional and institutional frameworks, in a spirit of good neighbourliness, cooperation, and peaceful coexistence among nations.
“The African Union emphasises that the complex internal challenges facing Venezuela can only be sustainably addressed through inclusive political dialogue among Venezuelans themselves,” the statement said.
The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he is “deeply alarmed”over the standoff between the United States and Venezuela in recent months, which culminated on Saturday morning in the capture of President Maduro by US special forces.
The Venezuelan Government denounced the act of “extremely serious military aggression” by the US, which followed months of increasing tension including a major military build up off the Venezuela coast and a series of deadly strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats.
“The Secretary-General is deeply alarmed by the recent escalation in Venezuela, culminating with today’s (Saturday's) United States military action in the country, which has potential worrying implications for the region,” said a statement issued by UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric.
“Independently of the situation in Venezuela, these developments constitute a dangerous precedent. The Secretary-General continues to emphasise the importance of full respect - by all - of international law, including the UN Charter,” the statement said.
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