Venezuela Calls U.N. Security Council Meeting Over U.S. Military Actions in Caribbean

The United Nations Security Council convened an emergency meeting late Friday at Venezuela’s request to discuss recent U.S. military operations in the Caribbean, which Washington says are aimed at drug traffickers.

In a letter addressed to Russia’s U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia, who currently presides over the council, Venezuela accused the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump of attempting to overthrow President Nicolás Maduro and threatening “peace, security and stability regionally and internationally.”

Caracas warned of an imminent “armed attack” against the country, saying U.S. actions constitute a broader campaign of aggression.

The request came a day after U.S. lawmakers rejected a bill that sought to limit Trump’s authority to use deadly military force against suspected drug traffickers. According to U.S. officials, the military has carried out four lethal strikes in the Caribbean in recent weeks as part of what Trump has called an “armed conflict” with drug cartels.

Venezuela’s U.N. ambassador, Samuel Moncada, accused Washington of pursuing “regime change” to seize control of the country’s vast natural resources.

While Venezuela did not disclose the nationalities of the 21 people killed in the strikes, it acknowledged for the first time the occurrence of the initial attack—an incident it had previously dismissed as fabricated using artificial intelligence. The U.S. has claimed that three of the targeted boats departed from Venezuela.

Russia, a long-time ally of Venezuela, is expected to back Caracas’s position during the Security Council discussions.