US, Venezuela clash at emergency UN meeting over strikes in Caribbean

The United States clashed with Venezuela and its allies at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on Friday, with the Trump administration vowing to use its full might to eradicate drug cartels and the Maduro government saying it anticipates an armed attack.

Venezuela asked for the meeting of the UN's most powerful body following deadly US military strikes on four boats that Washington says were carrying drugs.

Venezuela accused US President Donald Trump of seeking to topple President Nicols Maduro and threatening peace, security and stability regionally and internationally. The Trump administration has said three of the targeted boats set out to sea from Venezuela.

The strikes, which the US said killed 21 people, followed a buildup of US maritime forces in the Caribbean unlike any seen in recent times.

The belligerent action and rhetoric of the U.S. government objectively point to the fact that we are facing a situation in which it is rational to anticipate that in the very short term, an armed attack is to be perpetrated against Venezuela, Venezuela's UN Ambassador Samuel Moncada said.

While Venezuela got support from allies Russia and China, the rest of the 15-member council was cautious, calling for a de-escalation and adherence to the UN Charter, which requires all 193 member nations to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all other countries and to settle disputes peacefully.

Neither US Ambassador Mike Waltz nor his deputy attended the meeting, leaving Political Counsellor John Kelley to deliver the Trump administration's justification for the strikes.

President Trump has been very clear that he is going to use the full power of America, and the full might of the United States, to take on and eradicate these drug cartels, no matter where they're operating from and no matter now long they have been able to act with impunity, Kelley said.

He said the cartels are armed, well-organised and violent, and the United States has reached a point where we must use force in self-defence and defence of others.

Trump has declared that the US is in a non-international armed conflict with the cartels and his administration has said the military operations against them are consistent with the right to self-defence in the UN Charter.

Kelley stressed that the United States does not recognise Maduro or his government, repeating Trump's claim that Maduro is a narcoterrorist. Maduro and the government have denied the accusation.

Moncada called on the council to determine the existence of a threat to international peace and security due to the US military escalation, to adopt measures to avoid the worsening of the situation, and to approve a resolution in which all members, including the US, commit to respecting Venezuela's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The council is unlikely to take any of those actions because of the US and its veto power.

France's deputy UN ambassador, Jay Dharmadhikari, said France supports multilateral initiatives aimed at curbing the sources of financing of traffickers, but the fight against drug trafficking must also respect international human rights law and states must refrain from any unilateral armed initiative action.

Russia's UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said Venezuela has been subjected to unprecedented pressure and threats of military invasion." Every day, he said, the situation is becoming more acute, with large-scale US military activity just off Venezuela's coast threatening international peace and security.

Venezuela's request for the emergency meeting came a day after Republicans in the US Senate voted down legislation that would have put a check on Trump's ability to use deadly military force against drug traffickers.