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Russia says its military will be in Venezuela as long as necessary

"Neither Russia nor Venezuela are provinces of the United States," recalled the Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, María Zajárova, at a press conference this Thursday.

La portavoz de Exteriores de Rusia, María Zajárova © YouTube/Screenshot
The Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, María Zajárova Foto © YouTube/Screenshot

This article is from 5 years ago

The spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, María Zajárova, declared this Thursday that her military will remain in Venezuela for as long as the Government of that country needs them.

The Russian diplomat has taken the opportunity to define Washington's recent statements as "an arrogant attempt to dictate" to two sovereign states "how they should build relations."

On Wednesday, the president Donald Trump signaled that Russian soldiers should leave the oil-producing country as soon as possible, and in that sense he declared that "all options" are on the table, to the question of how that exit could occur.

"The United States sees the arrival of military aircraft from Russia as an unnecessary "provocation", according to the North American Vice President, Mike Pence.

However, Zajárova - one of the most powerful women in her country - assured this Thursday that the presence of the Russian military does not modify the balance of forces in Latin America nor does it pose a threat to anyone.

"Russia does not alter the balance of forces in the (Latin American) region, Russia does not threaten anyone unlike the citizens of Washington that I just mentioned," he stated.

In her traditional weekly press conference, the spokesperson for Russian diplomacy also alluded to the statements of the North American Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, who insisted that Russia's influence in Cuba and Nicaragua must end.

"I would like to ask these people: on what legal basis are these statements made? This is how I ask the question, which is not rhetorical. I want to hear an answer," Zakharova said.

"Regarding the statements of the US President and Secretary of State, we see in them an arrogant attempt to dictate to two sovereign States how they should build relations," the spokesperson reiterated, adding that "neither Russia nor Venezuela are provinces of the United States."

In this context, he has asked Trump for the legal bases on which he bases himself when he declares that "Russia has to leave" Venezuela.

Furthermore, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson stated that "before suggesting anyone leave somewhere, the US must implement its own exit concept, in particular from Syria."

"All this is an intentional provocation of chaos, of the dissolution of the State, as a result of which there may be no winners," he said.

The spokesperson stressed that Russia continues to "provide assistance to the legitimate Government of this country for the stabilization of the internal political situation and solution of the social and economic crisis."

The representative of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also highlighted that Juan "Guaidó can proclaim himself as whoever he wants", and remembers that "similar examples [were] described in history and medicine", but that does not change the fact that he does not has "no real power," [nor does it matter] "where his wife goes," he said, referring to the meeting this Wednesday between President Trump and Fabiana Rosales, wife of Guaidó, in the Oval Office.

The Russian spokesperson also added that the Russian soldiers who arrived in Venezuela last weekend did so thanks to a bilateral intergovernmental military cooperation agreement.

Zajárova also indicated that Moscow hopes that the Curaçao authorities will not allow the humanitarian aid reception center for Venezuela, installed in that country, to become a transit point for the shipment of weapons to the South American nation.

“We trust that the Curaçao authorities will not let their territory become a foothold for a new Western adventure,” he stressed.

He also reported that a few days ago Russia sent a shipment of humanitarian aid, medinas and medical modules to Venezuela, in accordance with the resolutions of the UN General Assembly.

Next week there will be a meeting of the Russia-Venezuela intergovernmental commission that will take place in Moscow, and where a series of economic-trade agreements, as well as in the field of energy and education, are expected to be signed.

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