Argentina Does Not Support Military Action Against Venezuela - Defense Minister

Argentina does not support the idea of a possible military invasion of Venezuela, the country's defense minister, Agustin Rossi, told Sputnik in an interview

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 04th February, 2020) Argentina does not support the idea of a possible military invasion of Venezuela, the country's defense minister, Agustin Rossi, told Sputnik in an interview.

"Our country's foreign policy is very clear on this issue. We believe that internal conflicts in countries should be resolved through dialogue, and in any case, we do not support military invasion into any country on the continent," he said, answering a relevant question.

According to the minister, the problems in Venezuela should be solved through diplomatic means.

Venezuela has been suffering from a severe political crisis since late January, when Juan Guaido, the head of the opposition-controlled National Assembly, proclaimed himself interim president in a bid to oust reelected President Nicolas Maduro from power. Maduro has accused Guaido of being a US puppet working with Washington to orchestrate a coup so that the United States can control Venezuela's natural resources.

Several Western countries, led by the US, recognized Guaido, while Russia, China, Turkey and a number of other states firmly backed Maduro.

Moscow has repeatedly warned Washington against a military scenario, with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov saying that the use of military force against Venezuela "will humiliate the entire region, all of Latin America, and the entire Caribbean." He noted that attempts at a violent change of power in Caracas are fraught with the most serious consequences. The Russian Foreign Ministry also believes that involving the military in Venezuela may provoke a civil war. Many other countries have also spoken out against military intervention in Venezuela.