Venezuela warns US to 'stay away from our coasts' amid heightened tensions

BOGOTA/ISTANBUL

Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez on Saturday warned the US to stay away from Venezuelan coasts and territory as tensions escalate over US naval deployments in the Caribbean.

Speaking in Carabobo state, Rodriguez accused the US government of hostile actions for sending warships to the Caribbean Sea.

She directed sharp words at Washington, telling them to solve their own problems and keep away from Venezuelan shores and territory.

Rodriguez warned that if the US attempts to attack the South American nation, Venezuela would become their "greatest nightmare."

She rejected Washington's claims that the Venezuelan government had transformed into a “narco-terrorist state,” calling such accusations against the "noble people" of Simon Bolivar and Hugo Chavez a "great fraud and immorality."

Rodriguez described these allegations as among "history's biggest lies and slanders."

Escalating US-Venezuela tensions

US President Donald Trump previously signed executive orders authorizing increased military use to combat Latin American drug cartels on-site.

A naval group consisting of one submarine and seven warships has been deployed to Caribbean waters off Venezuela following Trump's directive.

The US Treasury Department designated the Cartel de los Soles as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist organization on July 25, alleging that Maduro has led the drug trafficking organization for over a decade.

The US government raised the reward for Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's arrest or conviction from $25 million to $50 million on Aug. 8.

Maduro previously said on Aug. 18 that Venezuela would defend, liberate, observe and patrol its seas, skies and lands, noting that no one could touch Venezuela's territories or those of South America.