Spanish PM warns US operation in Venezuela sets dangerous precedent

MADRID -- Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Tuesday said that the US forcible seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro risked pushing the world into a dangerous new era and insisted his country would "not remain silent" in the face of violations of international law.

Speaking to the press after the Coalition of the Willing meeting for Ukraine in Paris, Sanchez said "The operation in Caracas sets a terrible and very dangerous precedent that pushes the world toward a future of uncertainty and insecurity, as we already suffered after other invasions driven by the thirst for oil."

He stressed that Spain could not recognize the legitimacy of a military action that violates international law and appears to serve no purpose other than overthrowing a government to seize its natural resources.

The Spanish government has been strongly critical of the attack on Venezuela, with Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares saying on Monday that the attack was "clearly contrary to international law" and that "the use of violent means and force must be completely absent" from foreign policy.

Sanchez also said "We cannot accept it, just as we cannot accept the threat to the territorial integrity of a European state like Denmark," referring US President Donald Trump's threat to annex the Danish territory of Greenland.

"We will not remain silent in the face of increasingly frequent violations of international law. We will always stand on the side of legality. We will use all the resources at our disposal to strengthen multilateralism," Sanchez noted.