Venezuela slams US' 'colonial threat' on its airspace

Venezuela has accused the United States of making a "colonial threat" and seeking to undermine its sovereignty, after US President Donald Trump said the airspace "above and surrounding" the South American nation should be considered closed "in its entirety".

In an official statement issued on Saturday, Caracas rejected Washington's attempt to apply extraterritorial jurisdiction to Venezuela, saying the US move threatens Venezuela's "territorial integrity, aeronautical security and full sovereignty".

It is "another extravagant, illegal and unjustified aggression against the Venezuelan people", the statement added.

In a post on his social media platform earlier on Saturday, Trump wrote, "To all Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers, please consider THE AIRSPACE ABOVE AND SURROUNDING VENEZUELA TO BE CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY."

The remark came amid heightening tensions between the US and Venezuela. In response, Venezuela said the US move amounts to an explicit threat of the use of force, which is prohibited under the United Nations Charter.

Under the 1944 Chicago Convention, each state exercises exclusive sovereignty over the airspace above its territory, the Venezuelan statement said, emphasizing that the country will not accept "orders, threats or interference" from any foreign power.

The statement appealed to the international community to firmly reject the "immoral act of aggression", adding that Venezuela will respond with legality and dignity.

Since early September, the US has carried out more than 20 known military strikes on what it said were drug vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean, killing more than 80 people.

The US military presence in the Caribbean was further strengthened in mid-November with the deployment of USS Gerald R. Ford, a major aircraft carrier, to a level unseen in at least three decades.

In his Thanksgiving message to US troops on Thursday night, Trump also suggested that the US could "very soon" take action by land against drug trafficking networks in Venezuela.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has denied his government's involvement in any drug trafficking, accusing the US of seeking a pretext to force a regime change in Venezuela.

Amid fears that Trump may launch a major operation in Venezuela, members of the US Congress — both Democrats and Republicans — have expressed their anger, saying that he has not sought legislative approval for any such action.

"President Trump's reckless actions toward Venezuela are pushing America closer and closer to another costly foreign war," Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer tweeted on Sunday on X. "Under our Constitution, Congress has the sole power to declare war," he said.

Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene said, "Reminder, Congress has the sole power to declare war."

Last month, the Federal Aviation Administration, top aviation regulator of the US, issued a warning to major airlines flying over Venezuela, highlighting dangers from a "potentially hazardous situation" due to the "worsening security situation and heightened military activity in or around" the South American country.

Venezuela later revoked the operating rights of six major international airlines that had suspended flights to the country after the FAA warning.

Last month, Cuba had accused the US of pushing for the violent removal of Venezuela's leadership, warning that the growing deployment of US military forces in the Caribbean represents an "exaggerated and aggressive" threat to regional stability.

Xinhua—Agencies