"We should not be surprised that Donald Trump, having had no problem aiding and abetting Israel's genocide in Gaza, is willing to flout the law when it comes to his bellicose threats to Venezuela and his lethal attacks on nearby alleged drug-running boats. Living up to the No Kings fears expressed by protesters across the United States, Trump acts as if he is above the law. The only way to rein in such criminality is to show his followers the dangerous implications of his conduct."
"Despite his administration's vow to launch no more open-ended conflicts, Trump has summoned an aircraft carrier to the Caribbean Sea and is already sending military helicopters provocatively near the Venezuelan coast. The Trump administration denies that its goal is regime change, but that certainly seems to be the purpose, as some officials privately concede. Ousting Venezuela's autocratic leader, Nicolas Maduro, has long been a goal of Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state."
"Whether Trump's provocations are empty threats or a prelude to an invasion, they are illegal. Nor does this saber-rattling create a bootstrap justification for Trump's unlawful killing murder of suspected drug traffickers emanating from Venezuela. The United Nations Charter, which binds all nations, prohibits the threat or use of force against another state unless authorized by the UN security council or undertaken in self-defense against an armed attack."
"Given the veto, there is no way the security council would authorize Trump to invade Venezuela. Nor can Trump construe an invasion as self-defense because Venezuela has not launched an armed attack against the United States. But what about the doctrine of humanitarian intervention, the idea that even without security council authorization, military force might be used to stop mass atrocities? I once subscribed to that doctrine, often called the Responsibility to Protect, or R2P."
Donald Trump aided and abetted Israel's actions in Gaza and is disregarding legal constraints in threats and lethal actions connected to Venezuela and nearby alleged drug-running boats. The administration deployed an aircraft carrier to the Caribbean and has sent military helicopters near the Venezuelan coast, actions that suggest regime-change objectives despite official denials. Efforts to remove Nicolás Maduro align with longstanding goals of some U.S. officials. Such provocations and killings of suspected traffickers violate the UN Charter, which prohibits force without Security Council authorization or self-defense following an armed attack. The Responsibility to Protect (R2P) doctrine has been supported in limited cases.
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]