CARACAS/NEW YORK/UNITED NATIONS/ROME – The US attack against Venezuela has left 100 dead, Venezuela’s Interior Ministry said Wednesday.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, both suffered injuries during the raid, said Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello.
Meanwhile, s demonstration was held in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas on Wednesday, calling for the defense of national sovereignty and demanding that the US government release Maduro and his wife.
Nahum Fernandez, head of the government of Caracas, called for unity to confront the anti-government campaigns promoted by the national and international opposition.
“There is no doubt here, what we must have here is revolutionary unity, what we must have here is the mobilization of a united people,” he said.
Participants marched from Ali Primera Park in the west of the capital to Plaza O’Leary in the downtown area.
Angel Prado, Venezuelan minister of communes, social movements and urban agriculture, said: “We want to tell the world that in Venezuela, the power of the people rules. In Venezuela, Maduro rules … and if Chavismo doesn’t rule here, nobody rules here.”
Prado expressed his support for the acting president, Delcy Rodriguez, saying that she was carrying out Maduro’s instruction “not to let the government fall”.
US to indefinitely control Venezuelan oil sales
Also on Wednesday, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the United States will not only market stored oil in Venezuela but also control the sales of oil output from the country indefinitely.
At an industry conference in Miami, Florida, Wright said: “We’re going to market the crude coming out of Venezuela, first this backed up, stored oil, and then indefinitely, going forward, we will sell the production that comes out of Venezuela into the marketplace,” according to media reports.
The sales will be “done by the US government and deposited into accounts controlled by the US government,” Wright said.
Wright added that the proceeds from oil then can flow back into Venezuela to benefit local people while the United States needs to have the leverage and control of oil sales to drive changes that must happen in Venezuela.
Venezuela’s state-owned oil company Petroleos de Venezuela S.A. said it is holding bilateral trade negotiations with the US for the sale of crude oil.
In a statement posted on its Telegram channel, the oil company said the two sides are discussing “the sale of oil volumes”, and that the process is being carried out using “similar schemes to those currently in place with international companies, such as Chevron”.
Goof offices to support possible dialogue
Separately, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed the availability of his good offices to support a possible inclusive national dialogue in Venezuela, his spokesperson said.
Speaking to reporters at a daily briefing, spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said the UN chief had just concluded a meeting with Venezuelan UN ambassador Samuel Moncada, which lasted about 45 minutes.
“During the meeting, the secretary-general reiterated his publicly-stated position on the US military action in Venezuela,” said Dujarric.
In another development, 37 members of the European Parliament (MEPs) have recently sent a joint letter to EU leaders, urging the European Union to condemn the United States’ military action against Venezuela.
According to Italy’s ANSA news agency on Monday, Italian MEP Danilo Della Valle said the letter was addressed to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas, calling on the EU to take a clear stance against Washington’s recent military operation in Venezuela.
Della Valle said the action “seriously violates international law and the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter,” warning that it could further undermine regional stability and exacerbate tensions in Latin America.