Hundreds of motorcycle riders took to the streets of Caracas on Monday to protest US ‘piracy’ against Venezuelan oil shipments. The rally comes after the US Navy intercepted two oil tankers carrying Venezuelan crude as part of an ongoing naval blockade of the Latin American country.
Participants at Monday’s biker rally said they were protesting US President Donald Trump’s attempts to seize Venezuela’s natural resources, oil in particular, while condemning the tanker seizures as illegal.
“We came out to repudiate that biggest pirate of the Caribbean, that fascist, that oil thief Donald Trump, who with his foolish speech has tried to seize the oil and sovereignty of Venezuela,” a protesters told state broadcaster teleSUR.
“We are pacifists. We want peace, but we are prepared for war,” another demonstrator said.
The demonstration took place as Venezuela’s National Assembly advanced an anti-piracy bill, which lawmakers said is meant to protect the country’s commercial relations and citizens from the “predatory actions” of the US government.
Trump has justified the blockade by claiming that the Latin American country “stole” US energy assets, while warning that Caracas will face the might of “the largest armada ever assembled in the history of South America” unless it returns them.
Venezuela has denounced Washington’s measures as piracy, accusing Washington of seeking regime change to gain control of the country’s vast oil reserves.
The US blockade has triggered international condemnation, with Russia and China urging restraint and respect for international law, while warning that America’s military action could trigger wider instability.