The United States has designated what Venezuelans call the “Cartel de los Soles”, or “Cartel of the Suns”, a “foreign terrorist organization”.
President Donald Trump’s administration added the “cartel”, which it asserts is linked to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, to the list on Monday, according to a notice published in the Federal Register.
However, the entity is not actually a cartel but rather a common reference in Venezuela to military officers and officials involved in corruption and other illegal activities.
In a statement responding to the move, Venezuela’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the action was a “ridiculous lie” used to justify future military intervention.
“Venezuela categorically, firmly, and absolutely rejects the new and ridiculous lie from the Secretary of the Department of State, Marco Rubio, who designates the alleged Cartel of the Suns as a terrorist organization … to justify an illegitimate and illegal intervention against Venezuela,” it said.
Washington’s designation, which comes during a US military build-up in the Caribbean Sea near Venezuela, could offer legal cover to potential direct military action.
Trump is reportedly mulling the next step in his campaign against the South American country.
A strike on Venezuelan territory would constitute a major escalation of the months-long US operation in the region, which has seen more than 80 people killed in strikes on boats that the Trump administration alleged were trafficking drugs.
United Nations officials and scholars of international law have said the strikes are in clear violation of US and international law and amount to extrajudicial executions.
Credit: aljazeera.com
