Labour was tearing itself apart on Sunday night as MPs demanded the Prime Minister condemn the US attack on Venezuela.
Sir Keir Starmer has refused to describe the capture of president Nicolas Maduro as an illegal act in breach of international law.
But he is under increasing pressure from Left-wing hardliners – who have already forced him to backtrack on major policies – to criticise the UK’s greatest ally.
Labour MPs lined up to accuse Sir Keir of double standards for claiming he would ‘shed no tears’ over the capture of Maduro despite denouncing Vladimir Putin‘s invasion of Ukraine. They warned his decision to support Donald Trump‘s devastating attack would forever ‘haunt his legacy’.
It comes after Mr Trump authorised an audacious raid on the South American country on Saturday which culminated in US special forces capturing Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores. It has emerged that Operation Absolute Resolve may have killed 40 people, including almost all of Maduro’s security team, but there were no US fatalities.
The US President has vowed to ‘run’ the oil-rich country in the meantime – a move which has been widely condemned by other nations.
Sir Keir Starmer refused to describe the capture of president Nicolas Maduro as an illegal act in breach of international law
Nicolas Maduro pictured being escorted by DEA agents on landing on US soil following his dramatic capture
Maduro and his wife are due to appear in court on Monday accused of participating in a ‘narco-terrorism’ conspiracy. It came as:
- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio insisted the US was not ‘at war’ with the people of Venezuela;
- Mr Trump warned the country’s new interim leader Delcy Rodriguez that she would pay a bigger price than Maduro if she ‘didn’t do what’s right’;
- Fears grew that other countries including Cuba could be targeted, while Mr Trump suggested Greenland could be next, insisting the US ‘needed’ the island for security;
- Pope Leo said he was watching developments with a ‘soul full of concern’ and called for justice and peace ‘while guaranteeing the country’s sovereignty’;
- The Venezuelan army demanded Maduro’s ‘immediate release’ and condemned the US’s ‘colonialist ambition’.
Following the dramatic strikes, countries including France, Germany and Canada warned that international law should be respected, while the United Nations said it was deeply concerned.
Firebrand Labour MP Richard Burgon demanded that Sir Keir join other leaders in criticising Mr Trump. He said: ‘The PM should respond to an illegal bombing and kidnapping by Trump in exactly the way he would if Putin had carried it out.’
President Trump has now warned new interim leader Delcy Rodriguez that she would pay a bigger price than Maduro if she ‘didn’t do what’s right’
Nicolas Maduro was captured and arrested on Saturday after Donald Trump authorised an audacious raid on the South American country
President Donald Trump watches Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s capture unfold in Washington, United States
Maduro pictured arriving in the US after he was flown from Venezuela to stand trial
The former shadow minister under Jeremy Corbyn added: ‘Either Keir Starmer believes in international law – or he doesn’t. You can’t pick and choose. Time to stand up to Trump’s gangster politics!’
Labour MP Clive Lewis said: ‘The UK must stand firmly for international law, or admit it no longer believes in it.’
Apsana Begum MP tweeted: ‘The Prime Minister’s support for Trump will forever haunt his legacy.’ Former Labour MP Diane Abbott told Sir Keir: ‘If you cannot say this is illegal, all your talk of human rights, the law and democracy is so much hot air.’
Mr Corbyn and his allies idolised Maduro’s predecessor Hugo Chavez despite his move towards authoritarianism and mismanagement of the economy.
Despite Sir Keir largely ridding Labour of its hard-Left faction, the remaining MPs have proved powerful and have forced him to backtrack on policies including the two-child benefit cap.
Sir Keir, a former human rights lawyer who has long prided himself on upholding the international rule of law, is yet to criticise the American raid.
His initial reaction was to say he wanted to ‘establish the facts, and take it from there’, adding that he had been a ‘lifelong advocate of international law’. He later appeared to back Mr Trump’s actions, saying the Government would ‘shed no tears’ over the end of the Maduro regime.
Allies of former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn have criticised Keir Starmer for his response to the Venezuela attack
Chief Secretary to the PM, Darren Jones, said it was not for the UK to say whether the US had broken international law, and he refused seven times on GB News to say whether Labour supported Mr Trump’s actions in Venezuela.
But the Government’s repeated insistence that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is illegal and its demands that Israel complies with international law in Gaza have prompted accusations of double standards.
Sir Keir’s silence – including when Mr Trump criticises his allies, such as London mayor Sadiq Khan – has riled some Labour MPs. And the perception that he is now treating the US President differently to Putin or Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu has prompted criticism from his party’s Left.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage tweeted on Sunday night: ‘The American actions in Venezuela overnight are unorthodox and contrary to international law – but if they make China and Russia think twice, it may be a good thing.’
