John Swinney ‘cannot see’ how Donald Trump strike on Venezuela meets international law

First Minister John Swinney has suggested that Donald Trump breached international law with the arrest of Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro.

The South American leader was seized by the US in a weekend strike on Caracas and is being held in a New York jail. America has charged him with drugs trafficking and weapons offences, which he denies, and Trump has said his government will “run” Venezuela, pending a “safe and proper and judicious transition”.

Foreign secretary Yvette Cooper is expected to set out the UK Government’s response in a statement to the House of Commons today.

Speaking in Glasgow, Swinney said that while “there is no doubt” that Maduro’s regime was “illegitimate and authoritarian”, he “cannot see” how the actions of the United States are in line with international law.

The SNP leader said: “There is no doubt that the Maduro regime was an illegitimate and authoritarian regime.
 
“However, I am clear that all nations must abide by the international rules-based system, and having listened carefully to what has been said by the United States administration in recent days, I cannot see how international law has been respected here.
 
“The international community must ensure that de-escalation, diplomacy, and democracy on the foundations of what follows the events of the weekend.”

The comments follow efforts by Swinney to build positive relations with Trump and end US tariffs on Scotch whisky.

When the Republican leader visited Scotland to open a new golf course last year, he called Swinney “terrific” and a “special guy”.

The UK Government has made similar efforts and on Saturday Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he would establish the facts of the situation before commenting on its legality, but said he is a “lifelong advocate of international law”.

This morning Emily Thornberry MP, the Labour chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the Commons, used similar wording to Swinney, saying she “cannot think of anything that could be a proper justification” for the US action.

She further said the strike was “not a legal action”, stating: “We condemn Putin for doing it. We need to make clear that Donald Trump shouldn’t be doing it either.

“People just can't do whatever they want. I mean, we really can't have a kind of international anarchy.”