UN Security Council to Hold Emergency Meeting Following Ousted Maduro in Venezuela

The United Nations Security Council has called for an emergency meeting on Monday (January 5) to discuss the coup attempt in Venezuela that ousted President Nicolas Maduro. Diplomatic sources said on Sunday (January 4) that the meeting was called at the request of Colombia. Russia and China have expressed their support for the meeting, the British news agency Reuters reported. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has described the US move to remove the Venezuelan president as a dangerous precedent for international law, saying military intervention in a sovereign state is contrary to the fundamental principles of the UN Charter and poses a risk to global stability. Reuters reports that Monday's meeting of the 15-member Security Council is likely to be a heated debate over Venezuela's sovereignty, international law and the legality of US military intervention. The UN Security Council met twice last October and December to discuss rising tensions between the United States and Venezuela, but diplomats believe the situation has become more complex and critical as a result of the recent operation. The Venezuelan government has strongly condemned the US operation. In a letter sent to the Security Council on Saturday, Venezuelan Ambassador to the United Nations Samuel Moncada strongly criticized the operation. He described it as a colonial war. He said it is an attempt to destroy the democratic system of government freely elected by the Venezuelan people. The United States launched airstrikes on the Venezuelan capital Caracas and several other cities early Saturday. During the attack, US Delta Force commandos took out President Maduro in a raid. Later, US President Donald Trump said that Maduro had been taken to the United States. He also released a photo of him. US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz claimed on social media that Maduro was an accused and illegitimate dictator who led a declared narco-terrorist organization and whose activities killed US citizens.