Venezuela: Maduro endorses ‘powerful military cooperation’ with Russia

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has endorsed “powerful military cooperation” with Russia following high-level discussions between Caracas and Moscow.

Agreements were announced from Venezuela’s presidential palace on Wednesday night after a visit of Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov to the South American country.

“We have reviewed the powerful military cooperation, and we have ratified the path of a powerful military cooperation between Russia and Venezuela for the defense of peace, of sovereignty, the defense of territorial integrity,” Maduro said during a news conference broadcast on state television.

“We are going to increase all the preparation, training and cooperation plans with a military power in the world such as Russia,” Maduro further said, stressing that Caracas supported Moscow in dispelling threats from the US-led NATO.

Russia, a major political ally of Venezuela, and the US-led NATO have recently been at odds over Ukraine. Western countries accuse Russia of preparing for an invasion of Ukraine by massing 100,000 troops and armaments near the border with that country. Rejecting the allegation, Moscow says the troop build-up is defensive as NATO has increased its activity near Russian borders.

Maduro, who was flanked by Borisov and Venezuelan Petroleum Minister Tareck El Aissami, further said that economic and commercial as well as tourism matters had also been discussed earlier in the day.

“We have walked the 21st century together, the people, the government of Russia and Venezuela and... we have built the map of cooperation to continue walking together, united,” the Venezuelan president added.

Maduro’s remarks came almost a month after he and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a telephone conversation about cooperation between Venezuela and Russia amid talk of possible Russian troop deployment to the South American country.

SS