"Cause for concern and worry": Former diplomat Manjeev Singh Puri on US action in Venezuela

New Delhi [India], January 5 : Former senior diplomat Manjeev Singh Puri on Monday voiced concern over the US strikes on Venezuela, cautioning that such actions raise fundamental questions about the present global order and the credibility of multilateral institutions.

Explaining the broader implications, Puri said, "The world is a power game, and the global order that we talk about, the multilateralism, the United Nations, is all fundamentally predicated on basically the US being the guarantor of this framework and the P5 standing behind it."

He linked recent developments to the wider structure of international governance.

Placing the situation in historical perspective, he noted that Washington has been involved in similar actions in the past.

"There have been so many cases of the US being involved in regime changes," Puri said, drawing attention to a recurring pattern in American foreign policy.

Referring specifically to the current moment, Puri added, "But it happening in today's time is certainly a cause for concern and worry."

He underlined that the timing of the latest developments has triggered renewed unease.

His remarks come in the aftermath of a pre-dawn US operation inside Venezuela.

During the operation, deposed dictator Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were detained and transferred to a US naval vessel before being flown to New York, according to the Trump administration.

US authorities have said that deposed dictator Nicolas Maduro is expected to face multiple charges.

These include narco-terrorism, drug trafficking and weapons-related offences, as the case moves into the judicial phase.

The operation followed months of intensified US military activity in the region.

Since September, Washington has launched dozens of strikes against vessels it claims were involved in drug trafficking linked to Venezuela.

These operations reportedly resulted in more than 115 deaths.

This has prompted legal experts to raise concerns over potential violations of international law, reinforcing the concerns highlighted by Puri.

US legal action against deposed dictator Nicolas Maduro dates back to President Donald Trump's first term.

A superseding indictment unsealed on Saturday added fresh allegations of narco-terrorism and conspiracy to import cocaine, expanding the scope of the case.

Attorney General Pam Bondi said on social media that Maduro and others "will soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts."

Her remarks signalled the administration's intent to pursue the case aggressively.

However, President Trump's own remarks added a broader political dimension to the operation.

Speaking at a press conference on Saturday, he went beyond a law enforcement justification.

He stated that the United States would "run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition."

Trump also referred to reclaiming American oil interests in Venezuela.

As deposed dictator Nicolas Maduro awaits arraignment in a federal court in New York, the legal proceedings ahead are expected to draw as much attention as the military operation that led to his capture.

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