US actions in Venezuela seen as precedent for authoritarian power seizures

US Abduction of Venezuelan Leader Sparks Concern Over International Law and US Politics

The United States has taken action against Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro, abducting him along with his wife Cilia Flores and taking them to New York for trial on drug-trafficking charges. According to Sultan Barakat, a senior professor at the College of Public Policy at Qatar’s Hamad Bin Khalifa University, this move skirts both international law and US political limits.

Barakat notes that the US is part of a “new imperialistic era” focused on oil and strategic interests. He attributes the US President Donald Trump’s actions to bypassing international law and Venezuelan law, as well as disregarding the will of the Venezuelan people.

The US has cited Chapter VII of the UN Charter as justification for its action, but Barakat argues that this is not a valid reason for seizing or removing a sovereign state leader without UN authorization. He points to the 2011 intervention in Libya and the 2003 invasion of Iraq as examples of US actions that did not meet these criteria.

Barakat also notes that the US has used dubious allegations to justify its actions, including linking Maduro to Iran, Hezbollah, and Palestinian groups. He argues that using a domestic court indictment from 2020 to justify the abduction is problematic and does not follow standard procedures for detaining or extraditing suspects.

The legality of the US action will be discussed at the UN Security Council on Monday. While some allies may oppose Maduro, it is unclear whether they will criticize the US for its actions.

Source: Al Jazeera