Venezuela’s Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza denounced on Monday a New York Times’ smear campaign against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, and warned that this news outlet is applying the same formulas used to justify the invasions in Iraq and Libya, and the coup in Bolivia in 2019.
According to a recent publication by The New York Times, “armed groups step into Venezuela as lawlessness grow,” referring to Colombia’s National Liberation Army (ELN).
The Venezuelan foreign minister warned on his Twitter account @jaarreaza, that “articles by The New York Times and other news outlets, as well as a vile report by Human Rights Watch, seek to step up meddling and pressure on the Latin American country using media coordinated actions in the face of the impossibility to overthrow the Venezuelan Government.”
“We denounce another campaign of lies by the @nytimes against Venezuela. While the #FANB confronts Colombian terrorist groups, this outlet applies the same formulas used to justify the invasion of Iraq and Libya, and the recent coup in Bolivia,” he tweeted.
“You will fail,” added Arreaza, who explained this campaign “coincides with the confession of members of the coup-mongering opposition that, from the United States, have accepted that a hybrid against Venezuela is developing to create chaos and violence.”
President Nicolás Maduro recently condemned a campaign by international media, including The New York Times, to downplay Venezuela’s efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.
Zero Tolerance
Last month, in the context of the 2021 Bolivarian Shield Operation, the Venezuelan president ordered the FANB to have zero tolerance with armed groups trying to enter Venezuela from Colombia.
Since March 21, the Venezuelan Armed Force has been facing irregular Colombian armed groups trying to burst into unpopulated areas in the west of La Victoria locality, in Apure bordering state.
On April 26, the Bolivarian National Armed Force informed that “deadly clashes with irregular Colombian armed groups” have been taking place in the last 72 hours on that bordering area.
The FANB recalled that “these criminal, terrorist organizations are acting with the support of the powerful financing structure of the Colombian oligarchy, whose vile aim is to export its drug trafficking, paramilitary model to our country, especially along the border, to build a vague territory as a base to create destabilization.”