Caracas, Dec 21 (EFE) President Hugo Chavez has claimed that a US “aircraft without a crew”, coming from Colombia, entered Venezuela’s air space on espionage tasks and he ordered the security forces to “shoot them down”.
“A few days ago, at midnight, one of their aircraft without a crew penetrated up to the Fuerte Mara (in the western border state of Zulia). The soldiers saw it, they called the officer of the guard. He came, but it left. The plane disappeared,” said Chavez on his Sunday radio and television show “Alo Presidente”.
It was “a small airplane, two or three meters long, they operated it by remote control, but (the aircraft) film everything, they even drop bombs. That is Yankee technology. Last night, I ordered: any little aircraft of those that appear, bring it down!”, he added.
The dispatch of drone aircraft like this constitutes “an act of war”, the Venezuelan president added, and he asked his Colombian counterpart, Alvaro Uribe, to act “responsibly” and avoid being used by Washington to “attack” Venezuela.
Chavez once again complained that the US is “using Colombia” and “moving aircraft into Aruba and Curacao” allegedly to “prepare an attack” against his socialist Bolivarian “revolution”.
“I warn … the international community that the attacks against Venezuela are increasing and the preparations are clear,” Chavez said.
Chavez last Thursday accused The Netherlands of collaborating with the US on a plan to attack Venezuela.
A day later, the Dutch government called Chavez’s complaint unfounded and announced that its Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen would request an explanation from Venezuela’s ambassador to The Netherlands concerning the matter.
