Why it matters:
The protests highlight growing public opposition in the U.K. to U.S. interventionism and expose Western double standards on international law and sovereignty.
The big picture:
As international condemnation grows over Washington’s blatant violation of international law in Venezuela, public anger is increasingly visible in Western capitals over their governments’ silence and tacit support.
What they're saying:
Christopher Nineham: Executive Director of the largest anti-war coalition in Europe, "Well, the message here is, of course, to the British government as well, because they are complicit in the imperialist aggression against the people in Venezuela, because the British banks are responsible for the repression of the Venezuelan people and the Venezuelan state. The Bank of England has to return the gold stolen from Venezuela. And the British state is also complicit in providing intelligence to the United States to bomb in the initial period, the fishing boat, for example, in the Caribbean. You know the British state and the British government are even involved in the recent attacks, which ended up with the kidnapping of Madoru, but there is a relationship between Britain and the United States in repressing and oppressing the Venezuelan people to destroy the Bolivarian revolution. So, the main message is that we have to build a movement here that is going to show unconditional support to the Venezuelan people and the Bolivarian revolution there."
A British citizen, "The people of Venezuela and the people of the Caribbean, because this mad man is running wild over there, doing what this thing is right. We are facing a genocidal situation. Well, I demand that this man be brought before international law. We all know that the drugs don't come from Venezuela. There are more drugs from America and Mexico than the Venezuela. Why do they pretend that it is about drugs? We know that it is about the oil. We all know that it is about that Venezuela has nationalized the oil industry. So, he has to be tried in the international court."
A civil activist in England, "The most important message is that the people stand for Venezuela. The streets stand for Venezuela. The streets stand against the imperialism of the U.S., Britain, and the Labor government. The masses of people across the world, the impressed people across the world know that this is justified, they recognize President Nicolas Maduro, and they know that the U.S. is exploiting and taking the natural resources and the riches of Venezuela. This is what they have done again and again throughout history, and this is happening because of the imperialist system."
Key points:
- Demonstrators gathered outside the Prime Minister’s office in central London.
- Protests were also held in Bristol, Edinburgh, and Glasgow.
- The Stop the War Coalition coordinated nationwide protests.
- U.K. peace activists earlier staged online protests denouncing Donald Trump’s military action in Venezuela.
Go deeper:
The Islamic Republic of Iran has consistently condemned U.S.-led coups and military interventions as instruments of neo-colonial domination. The protests in the U.K. reflect a broader global rejection of unilateral aggression and reinforce the view of the Axis of Resistance that confronting U.S. interventionism is essential to defending sovereignty and international law.
ahmad shirzadian - Zohre Khazaee
