Former Indian envoys call US attack on Venezuela's Capital as "unsurprising"

New Delhi [India], January 3 : The US strike on Venezuela and the subsequent capture of President Nicolas Maduro has sparked a debate in diplomatic circles.

Former Indian envoys to Venezuela R. Viswanathan and Yashvardhan Kumar Sinha said the action was anticipated and even "unsurprising" in nature, claiming that the United States has always worked against Maduro's regime.

Speaking to ANI, Former Indian Ambassador to Venezuela, R. Viswanathan, said that the attack was not a surprise and that President Trump had threatened Maduro from the first time he came to power. He claimed that there was also a failed attempt earlier to overthrow Maduro. But, this time, the envoy contended that "the President sent warships, and authorised the CIA".

He said," It was not a surprise... this is not the first time he had threatened. When he was President for the first time, at that time also he had threatened Venezuela. He tried to change the regime through operations. There was even a mercenary attack aimed at overthrowing Maduro; it failed. But, this time he has sent the warships, and he has authorised the CIA; no one was expecting this, even Maduro, no surprise"

When asked whether the ongoing situation in Venezuela would affect India, he said it would not, as India's trade with Venezuela is minimal, with only some investment by ONGC in its oil fields. He just warned to be apprehensive about the coming changes in Latin America, as the attack and capture will make the US even bolder.

He said, "No, it will not affect India. We, at one time in 2013-14, were importing over 10 billion barrels of oil from Venezuela. At that time, it was accounting for 7-8 per cent of our imported oil. But now, because of the sanctions, it has stopped. We are not dependent on Venezuela for oil. Our trade is very little, and we have some investment by ONGC in their oil fields... So, this is not going to affect India in any big way. Just that if Americans get away with it, they will become bolder, and they will do more things in Latin America, and the world can do nothing about it."

Meanwhile, Yashvardhan Kumar Sinha, former Indian Ambassador to Venezuela, speaking to ANI, said, "It's not very surprising that this action has taken place because it was being anticipated in terms of the US wanting regime change in Venezuela, and we were aware of the military buildup in the Caribbean Sea, surrounding Venezuela."

He claimed that it was one of the largest buildups by the United States. He said that it's time to wait and see what is upcoming in Venezuelan politics in the coming days. According to him, he doesn't see any possibility of the Venezuelan Military of getting him back.

He said, "One of the largest buildup ny US. What happened during the night and early morning was a very precise, coordinated attack... This is obviously a very calculated move to extract President Maduro. how was that achieved we will get to know only as time goes by.There whereabouts are unknown, the Vice President, Delcy Rodrigue, has reportedely sought proof, that they are alive."

He added, "But what is important is to see how the Venezuelan military reacts, because don't forget that the Venezuelan military backed Maduro's repressive regime and as long the military was with him, he was safe, he could even take elections away from the genuine winner Edmundo Gonzalez, in 2024 elections. I think once Maduro is removed from the scene, one will have to see how politics plays out in Venezuela... Though, I don't see any possibility of the Venezuelan Military of getting him back. But we will have to see how the politics and the internal situation in Venezuela turns out"

US President Donald Trump told Fox News on Saturday that the United States had planned to conduct the military operations in Venezuela four days ago but had to delay it due to the weather conditions.

"We were going to do it four days ago but the weather was not perfect. The weather has to be perfect... It was amazing. I'll tell you- it was highly guarded, like a fortress actually. We had nobody killed, we lost no aircraft," Trump said in his first remarks after the United States conducted strikes into Venezuela that led to the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores.

"We had to do it. It is a war. We are losing three hundred thousand people a year. We don't lose that much in a war," he told Fox News.

Trump said the US action, "sends a signal we're not going to be pushed around as a country anymore." He lauded the professionalism behind the action.

"It was amazing to see the professionalism the quality of leadership...To have a few injuries but no deaths on our side is really amazing," Trump told Fox News.

"We were surrounded by lots of people, including Generals and they knew everything that was happening. It was extremely complex- the whole manoeuvre the landing, number of aircraft, helicopters, different kinds of fighter jets. They just broke in, and into places which were not really able to broke into," he added.

The United States carried out strikes on Venezuela and captured President Nicolas Maduro, along with his wife, Cilia Flores, who were flown out of the country.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said that the operation was done in conjunction with US Law Enforcement.

US Attorney General Pamela Bondi on Saturday announced that captured Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro has been charged with Narco-Terrorism and would face US justice.

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