Iran warns U.S. operation near Venezuela risks regional stability

TEHRAN, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei on Saturday warned of "precarious" consequences for international peace and security from intensified U.S. military activity in the Caribbean and Latin America. In a statement, he urged respect for Venezuela's sovereignty and territorial integrity, two days after U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced a "counternarcotics operation" in the Western Hemisphere known as "Southern Spear." Baghaei said U.S. threats to use force against Venezuela's legal government amounted to "conspicuous law-breaking" and a violation of the UN Charter. He cited "numerous reports" by international organizations describing U.S. attacks on fishing boats in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific as "arbitrary and extrajudicial killings," and said Washington was "abusing" the issue of drug trafficking to infringe on Venezuela's sovereignty. He also called on the United Nations to prevent actions that could undermine international peace and encourage "belligerent unilateralism." The United States has deployed several warships north of Venezuela, saying the mission targets suspected "narco-terrorists" it claims are linked to the Venezuelan government. Since September, the United States has carried out 20 strikes on fishing vessels in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific, killing 80 people.