The US government will not be able to impose a model of colonial domination over Venezuela or steal its natural resources, said the president of the republic, Nicolás Maduro, on the television channel Venezolana de Televisión.
“It is impossible for the US government to fabricate such a virtual reality“, the president repeated in English, emphasizing that the Venezuelan people have demonstrated the ability “to lead the country on the right path“.
Maduro noted that Venezuela strives for peace and mutual understanding. He called on the US to abandon the failed projects that Washington has been trying to implement in Venezuela for 25 years. If the United States is ready to engage in dialogue on a respectful basis, "we will always find here a president who represents his people, to reach out, to seek paths to peace, cooperation and prosperity," Maduro stressed.
Washington accuses the Venezuelan authorities of failing to adequately combat drug trafficking. The US Navy has deployed a strike group of US ships, led by the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, with more than 16,000 troops in the Caribbean Sea, and has destroyed at least 28 motor boats in international waters since September, killing more than 100 people.
On December 10, US President Donald Trump announced the seizure of a sanctioned oil tanker carrying Venezuelan oil. On December 20, the US confirmed the seizure of the Panamanian-flagged tanker Centuries. On December 21, Bloomberg reported the seizure of the tanker Bella 1, which was traveling to Venezuela under the Panamanian flag.