Maduro says Venezuela open to US talks on drug trafficking
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said Thursday he is open to talks with the United States on drug trafficking and oil, following a weeks-long pressure campaign against his government.
In an interview with Venezuelan state television, Maduro said he was ready for dialogue with the United States “wherever and whenever they want.”
He also sidestepped President Donald Trump’s remarks that the United States attacked a port facility in Venezuela reportedly run by the CIA. The BBC has contacted the White House for comment.
This comes as US forces have been targeting ships they suspect are smuggling narcotics through the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific for the past three months.
In total, there have been more than 30 attacks on ships as part of the Trump administration’s “war on drugs” and more than 110 people have been killed since the United States carried out its first attack on a boat in international waters on September 2.
The latest attack took place on Wednesday, when two boats allegedly carrying drugs were rammed, killing all five people on board, according to the US military.
On Monday, Trump said the United States launched an attack on a “dock area” allegedly linked to Venezuelan drug boats, causing a “massive explosion.”
According to CNN and the New York Times, based on sources familiar with the matter, the explosion was caused by a drone attack carried out by the CIA. If confirmed, this would be the first known US operation in Venezuela.
However, there was something difficult for Maduro to understand in the interview. Asked if he could approve the attack, Maduro said: “This may be something we will talk about in a few days.”
Maduro said that he is open to talks on oil and migration issues, as well as drug trafficking.
Without providing evidence, Trump accused Maduro of “emptying his prisons and mental hospitals” and “forcing” prisoners to immigrate to the United States.
The US is also cracking down on sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela.
US forces seized an oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela on December 10, saying it was “used to transport sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran.” Venezuela called it an act of “international piracy”.
Since then, the US has seized another oil tanker and is pursuing a third.
The Trump administration treats its operations against alleged drug boats as a non-international armed conflict against would-be traffickers, but legal experts say they may be violating laws governing such conflicts.
The US has provided no evidence that the boats it targeted were carrying drugs. But US Southern Command insisted again this week that “intelligence confirms the ships were transiting known drug smuggling routes and were engaged in drug smuggling.”
