The first court appearance of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and the development of events after the US operation to capture him are among the leading topics today in American and British publications, writes BTA.
The deposed President of Venezuela Maduro pleaded not guilty to charges of narco-terrorism and weapons possession at his first court appearance in New York last night, writes the British newspaper “Telegraph“.
Maduro could draw inspiration from the case against former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega, who is waging a long-standing legal battle to be recognized as a prisoner of war after surrendering to US forces in 1990, the newspaper commented. A federal judge ultimately ruled that Noriega was a prisoner of war under the Geneva Convention, which entitles him to wear a military uniform and be housed separately from other prisoners in a bungalow equipped with a television and gym equipment, the Telegraph reported.
The indictment against Maduro, presented on Saturday by US Attorney General Pam Bondi, echoes President Donald Trump's claims that his military intervention in Venezuela was necessary to stem the flow of drugs to the US, the Guardian reported.
The US military's strikes on alleged "drug ships" in the months leading up to the operation in Venezuela, at least 110 people were killed, leading some legal experts to question whether the US side is responsible for committing war crimes, the publication notes.
Trump justified Maduro's capture as necessary so that the US could seize “stolen” oil from Venezuela, and promised that Washington would “manage” Venezuela for the foreseeable future, as American energy companies take control of the country's rich oil reserves, the newspaper commented.
The nighttime raid in which the Venezuelan leader was captured, which followed months of escalating US pressure on Maduro, caused shock around the world, confusion in Venezuela about who is at the helm of the country and raised concerns that President Trump may also carry out threats he has made to other countries, including Cuba, Colombia, Mexico and Canada, the American newspaper "Washington Post" emphasized.
The Trump administration has given conflicting signals about what is to come in Venezuela, the publication notes. After Maduro's capture, Trump announced that the United States would “run“ Venezuela. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, however, has taken a different stance, saying in television interviews that the United States will "manage the policy," not the country itself, according to the Washington Post.
For Russia and China, this uncertainty creates opportunities, say foreign policy analysts quoted by the New York Times. "If we have the right to be aggressive in our own backyard, why can't they?" said Fiona Hill, a Russia expert at the Brookings Institution. in Washington.
It is striking that China and Russia condemned the US operation against Venezuela, but did not threaten to defend their ally, the “New York Times“ points out.
President Vladimir Putin has remained out of the spotlight and has not spoken out on the subject, but former President Dmitry Medvedev, one of the most vocal and aggressive Russian politicians, expressed the Kremlin's pragmatism, the publication notes. “Let's put it bluntly, they no longer have grounds, even formal, to reproach our country for anything,“ he said, referring to the United States.