CARACAS: President Nicolas Maduro announced on Monday that Venezuelan authorities foiled a false flag operation orchestrated by what he described as local terrorists who attempted to plant explosives at the US embassy in Caracas. The aim, he said, was to worsen tensions between Venezuela and the United States over drug trafficking issues.
Speaking on his weekly TV program, Maduro said two unnamed sources indicated that a local terrorist group likely placed an explosive device at the embassy to escalate the dispute with Washington. Jorge Rodriguez, head of Venezuela’s dialogue delegation with the US, said Caracas had warned Washington of a “serious threat” from extremists attempting to plant lethal explosives at the embassy and that security measures there have been reinforced.
Diplomatic ties between Caracas and Washington were severed in 2019, and the US embassy has since remained largely deserted except for a few local employees. Maduro emphasized that the embassy remains protected despite deep differences with the US government.
Washington has focused heavily on Venezuela in its fight against drug trafficking, deploying warships and planes to the Caribbean and bombing boats off Venezuela’s coast accused of smuggling drugs to the US.
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