Venezuela accuses US of 'clandestine plot' as tension increases over Caribbean strikes

US has launched military strikes against alleged drug-smuggling boats, killing 27 people

A US strike on one of the Venezuelan boats.

Venezuela’s UN envoy Samuel Moncada warned that tension with Washington is entering “an escalating process”, describing the situation as “ominous".

Mr Moncada told reporters in New York that US President Donald Trump was directing “a major warmongering propaganda operation, a military escalation and a clandestine intelligence plot with a licence to kill”, aimed at fomenting a coup in Venezuela.

He said that he had asked the UN Security Council to investigate “a series of assassinations” carried out by the US in Latin America, and to assess the legality of such actions.

Mr Trump has ordered a major military buildup in the southern Caribbean, where American forces have carried out at least five strikes on vessels the administration claims were engaged in drug trafficking though it has not provided evidence to support those assertions.

US forces have destroyed at least five vessels since early September, killing 27 people. Four of the boats were believed to have departed from Venezuelan ports.

Mr Moncada urged the council to reaffirm “unrestricted respect for the sovereignty, political independence and territorial integrity of states, including Venezuela”, warning that US military manoeuvres and CIA operations near the country’s coasts posed a threat to regional peace.

However, the Security Council is unlikely to take any concrete action beyond holding discussions, as the United States wields veto power.

The body convened for the first time on the issue last week at the request of Venezuela, Russia, and China.

During that session, Washington defended its actions under Article 51 of the UN Charter, which allows states to act in self-defense against armed attacks, provided the Security Council is promptly notified of such measures.

Mr Trump confirmed on Wednesday that he had authorised the CIA to conduct covert operations inside Venezuela and said he was considering possible land operations there.

The admission marks a rare public acknowledgement of clandestine US activity in Venezuela, long a flashpoint in Washington’s tense relationship with President Nicolas Maduro’s government.

Mr Maduro criticised the record of the US spy agency in various conflicts around the world, without directly addressing Mr Trump’s comments about authorising the CIA to carry out covert operations in Venezuela.

“No to regime change that reminds us so much of the [overthrows] in the failed eternal wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and so on,” Mr Maduro said during a televised event.

“How long will the CIA continue to carry on with its coups? Latin America doesn’t want them, doesn’t need them and repudiates them."

The objective is “to say no to war in the Caribbean, no to war in South America, yes to peace”, he added.