The Foreign Minister of Venezuela, Yván Gil, accused this Friday the Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, of professing “hatred” for Latin America and called him a “liar”, after the US diplomatic chief offered his annual management review.
“Mr. Marco Rubio’s press conference, to take stock of his administration, has left him in a very bad light, showing how liar, self-conscious and the hatred he professes for Latin America and the Caribbean,” Gil said in a message on Telegram.
“He is an expert in promoting coups d’état, interventions, eternal wars and ‘regime changes’, and he intends to drag the United States down that path, ignoring the majority opinion of the American people themselves, who reject these adventures,” Gil continued, reiterating the Venezuelan Government’s complaint about the “threats” against it due to the US military deployment in the Caribbean.
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The Venezuelan minister assured that Rubio’s speech was a “complete failure” and insisted that “all his attacks and ‘fake news’ seek to steal Venezuela’s oil, land, minerals and resources.”
Rubio spoke earlier about the relationship with Latin America at a time marked by the aggressive United States campaign against drug trafficking, especially in the Caribbean, where Washington maintains a naval and military deployment within the framework of which more than 20 boats have been attacked, causing more than 80 deaths.
The US Secretary of State indicated that Mexico is cooperating on security matters more than ever in its history and also noted that it works jointly with Panama, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador and the Dominican Republic.
On the other hand, he indicated that Venezuela is the opposite case.
The official avoided answering whether Donald Trump’s Administration seeks to remove Nicolás Maduro from power in Venezuela and stated that the strategy is to protect “the interests.”
“We have an illegitimate regime that openly cooperates with terrorists who threaten the security of the United States,” said Rubio when asked if Washington’s strategy is to depose the Chavista leader.
He also warned that “there is nothing” that could prevent Donald Trump’s Administration from blocking the entry and exit of Venezuela of oil tankers sanctioned under US legislation.
“There is nothing that is going to impede our ability to enforce (sic.) the laws of the United States in terms of the vessels that are sanctioned,” he responded in Spanish.
With information from EFE
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