China urges U.S. to stop interfering in Venezuela’s internal affairs: FM spokesperson

BEIJING: China urged the United States to abide by the UN Charter and basic norms governing international relations and stop interfering in Venezuela’s internal affairs, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said here Monday.

Hua made the remarks when responding to media reports that the U.S. Department of Justice on March 26 indicted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his aides on narco-terrorism charges, and that the U.S. State Department offered a reward of up to 15 million U.S. dollars for information leading to the arrest or conviction of Maduro.

Stressing that Venezuela is a sovereign and independent country, Hua said China had always opposed any external force infringing on Venezuela’s sovereignty and interfering in Venezuela’s internal affairs under any pretext, and firmly opposed illegal unilateral sanctions.

China calls on all parties to give priority to the well-being of the Venezuelan people, meet each other halfway, and do more to safeguard the stability in Venezuela and the region and promote the peaceful settlement of the Venezuelan issue, she added