• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

'Let the Public Decide': India Echoes Russian, Chinese Sentiment on Venezuela

Sputnik News

13:13 25.01.2019(updated 15:32 25.01.2019)

In its first response to the ongoing political developments in Venezuela, India's Ministry of External Affairs on Friday extended its support to President Nicolas Maduro by indicating that it does not support interference in the nation's domestic affairs.

Echoing the views of Russia and China, India has stated that it should be left to the people of Venezuela to decide who their president should be.

"We are closely following the emerging situation in Venezuela. We are of the view that it is for the people of Venezuela to find a political solution to resolve their differences through constructive dialogue and discussion without resorting to violence," a statement issued by India's Ministry of External Affairs reads.

Responding to queries about India's position on the crisis, the ministry further added that it believes democracy, peace and security in Venezuela are of paramount importance to the South American state.

The political crisis, marked with violent protests for and against President Nicolas Maduro, deepened on Wednesday after opposition leader Juan Guaido, who heads the National Assembly, declared himself interim president, describing last year's election as invalid.

Guaido, backed by US President Donald Trump and a few other global powers, argued that the country's constitution allows him to assume interim power despite Maduro refusing to step down.

However, other countries, including Russia, China and now India, observe that Guaido's move violates international norms and is a "bid to usurp power" from a democratically elected government.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday pledged his support to Nicolas Maduro in a phone call.

"He (Putin) emphasised that destructive external interference is a gross violation of the fundamental norms of international law. He spoke in favour of searching for solutions within the constitutional framework and overcoming differences in Venezuelan society through peaceful dialogue," a statement issued by the Kremlin reads.

China echoed his comments on Thursday, with its foreign ministry saying it favours a solution within "the framework of the Venezuelan Constitution."

"China always upholds the principle of non-interference in other counties' internal affairs and opposes foreign interference in Venezuela's affairs. We hope that the international community can jointly create favourable conditions for that," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said on Thursday.

© Sputnik