US Hears It From Allies, Foes at UN

The US faced broad criticism at an emergency UN Security Council session Monday over the armed operation in Venezuela that brought President Nicolas Maduro to New York to face criminal charges. Representatives from nations including China, Colombia, Cuba, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, and Spain called the strikes on Venezuelan territory and the seizure of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, a violation of sovereignty and an unlawful use of force, the Guardian reports. Brazil's UN ambassador said the action crossed "an unacceptable line." France's representative, per the New York Times, said the US military operation "chips away at the very foundation of international order."

Colombia's envoy called the US action an "act of aggression" that could not be justified under any circumstances. Russia and China demanded Maduro and Flores be released, accusing Washington of acting as self-appointed global enforcer, per the Guardian. Moscow's ambassador said the intervention signaled "a turn back to the era of lawlessness," and China's representative said the US had "trampled upon Venezuela's sovereignty" and should abandon "bullying and coercive practices." Venezuela's ambassador described the operation as an "illegitimate armed attack" and labeled Maduro's transfer to US custody a kidnapping.

US Ambassador Mike Waltz rejected the characterization of the mission as an act of war, calling it a lawful operation to execute long-standing criminal indictments against an illegitimate leader, citing the 1989 arrest of Panama's Manuel Noriega as a precedent and invoking the UN Charter's self-defense article. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned in a statement that the move risked further destabilizing Venezuela and the region and questioned its conformity with international law. Legal experts have also challenged the operation's basis, noting the absence of Security Council approval, Venezuelan consent, or a clear self-defense claim. The council, divided and constrained by the US veto, showed no sign of agreeing on a joint response.