Venezuela bans six international airlines as tensions escalate
Venezuela has banned six major international airlines from landing in the country after they failed to meet a 48-hour deadline to resume flights.
Airlines had temporarily suspended their routes to the capital Caracas after the US warned that “military activities have increased” in the region.
Angered, the Venezuelan government gave the carriers an ultimatum that expires on Wednesday. Thousands of passengers were affected, while a number of smaller airlines continued to fly to Venezuela.
The US deployed a large force to irrigate Venezuela; He says it is to combat drug trafficking, but the Venezuelan leader has denounced it as an attempt to overthrow him.
Venezuela’s civil aviation authority, which reports to the country’s transport ministry, announced on Wednesday that Iberia, TAP Portugal, Gol, Latam, Avianca and Turkish Airlines will lose their landing and take-off rights with immediate effect.
Citing increased US military activity off the coast of Venezuela, he accused the airlines of “participating in acts of state terrorism encouraged by the United States government and unilaterally suspending air commercial operations.”
The United States deployed 15,000 troops and the world’s largest aircraft carrier, USS Gerald Ford, very close to Venezuela.
The United States says the purpose of the deployment, its largest in the region since it invaded Panama in 1989, is to combat drug trafficking.
US forces launched at least 21 attacks on boats they claimed were carrying drugs, leaving more than 80 people dead.
But they did not provide evidence that the boats were carrying drugs, and many analysts noted that the United States had an unusually large deployment for a counter-narcotics operation.
The Venezuelan government believes the aim of the operation is to remove President Nicolás Maduro, whose re-election last year was condemned as fraudulent by the Venezuelan opposition and many foreign countries.
Amid rising tensions, the US Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) issued a warning on Friday to flight operators operating at Maiquetía, the international airport serving Caracas.
He urged airlines to “exercise caution at all altitudes… due to the deteriorating security situation and increased military activities in and around Venezuela.”
Following this warning, the now banned airlines were seen suspending their flights to Venezuela.
An attempt by aviation industry body Iata to defuse the situation by emphasizing its member airlines’ willingness to restart operations did not appease the Venezuelan government.
In recent days, both Maduro and his US counterpart Donald Trump have signaled a willingness to engage in direct talks.
Asked about the issue aboard Air Force One, Trump said he could “talk to” Maduro, but also cautioned that “we can do things the easy way, that’s fine, and if we have to do things the hard way, that’s okay too.”
Meanwhile, Maduro uploaded a video showing off Christmas decorations while walking around Caracas; This appeared to be an attempt to show that life in the city was continuing as normal.
