(NewsNation) — Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is expected to be arraigned on criminal charges related to narco-terrorism, drug and weapons offenses in a New York courtroom as early as Monday while questions remain about the legality of his capture under international law.
South Africa led the call in requesting an urgent United Nations Security Council session following the unilateral attack on Venezuela, with several other members of the Council — including France and China — questioning whether the U.S. violated international law.
“The Secretary-General continues to emphasize the importance of full respect – by all – of international law, including the U.N. Charter. He’s deeply concerned that the rules of international law have not been respected,” U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.
United States’ justification for military intervention
The Trump administration has repeatedly blamed Venezuela for flooding the U.S. with narcotics, namely fentanyl and other opioids.
The U.S. has killed at least 115 people in 35 strikes on alleged drug smuggling boats in the Caribbean since September.
During Trump’s first term in office in 2020, the Justice Department alleged Maduro had effectively converted Venezuela into a criminal enterprise at the service of drug traffickers and terrorist groups as Maduro and his allies stole billions from the South American country.
Maduro has previously accused the U.S. of “giving orders to flood Venezuela with violence” and called Trump a “racist cowboy.” The Venezuelan president warned that he was ready to fight by whatever means necessary should the U.S. and neighboring Colombia dare to invade.
Maduro, 63, has long accused the U.S. of looking for any excuse to take control of the world’s largest oil reserves, likening its plotting to the 1989 invasion of Panama and the removal of Gen. Manuel Noriega to face drug trafficking charges in Florida.