Above photo: Venezuelan Boeing 747-300 belonging to EMTRASUR landing in an airport.
Venezuela reported that it will file complaints against Argentina and the United States before the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) for violating international regulations following the brazen theft of the EMTRASUR Boeing 747 cargo jet. This was announced on Monday, February 12, after the United States stole the Venezuelan state cargo airline’s jet in collusion with Argentina. The plane had been illegally and arbitrarily retained for over 20 months in Argentina while a barrage of fake news was directed against Venezuela to criminalize the nation and legalize the theft by the US.
In a statement published by Venezuelan Minister for Foreign Affairs Yván Gil, Venezuela categorically condemns the theft of the cargo jet, which was hijacked by the Argentinian judiciary in 2022 and kept grounded in the international airport of Buenos Aires since then. Venezuela accused Argentina and the US of violating “all the rules that regulate international civil aviation,” as well as EMTRASUR’s commercial, civil, and political rights, “putting aeronautical security in the region at risk.”
Venezuela accused both Argentina and the US of hiding information when identifying the flight and having turned off the transponder several times during its flight to the United States.
“The Venezuelan State will exercise all actions for justice to be restored and the aircraft returned to its legitimate owner,” the Venezuelan communiqué states.
Telesur journalist Madelein García reported that Venezuelan aeronautic agency INAC had issued a notification that the overflight of the aircraft, owned by state-owned Conviasa, was not authorized. However, it was ignored by Argentina and the US.
The journalist explained that Colombian President Gustavo Petro “ordered no overflight in its airspace.” Yet, the aircraft turned off the transponder and disappeared from radars when it arrived in Cartagena.
Below is the unofficial translation of the Venezuelan statement:
The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela categorically condemns the blatant theft of the Boeing 747-300 aircraft, registration YV 3531, belonging to the Aerocargos del Sur Transport Company (EMTRASUR SA), consolidated today through collusion between the governments of the United States of America and the Republic of Argentina, who have artfully violated all the rules that regulate civil aeronautics, as well as the commercial, civil and political rights of the aforementioned company, putting aeronautics security in the region at risk.
The shameful rapacious operation is part of the list of criminal attacks against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, which have been carried out for more than a decade by the United States and include the seizure of assets, such as the CITGO company, and the application of more than 930 illegal sanctions with the complicity of the extreme right-wing opposition that acts as direct agents of the US empire against Venezuela.
Free and sovereign Venezuela will give a forceful, direct, and proportionate response to this attack, for which it will use all available resources within the framework of the national Constitution, diplomacy, and International Law.
The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela condemns, before the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the violation, by the two aforementioned governments, of the international regulations to which states are obliged in matters of air navigation, which generates a serious situation of unprecedented legal and operational insecurity in our region.
Among the crimes committed, the concealment of information when identifying the flight, turning off the transponder on several sections of the route, and others that must be investigated independently have been noted. The Venezuelan State will take all actions to restore justice and achieve the restitution of the aircraft to its legitimate owner.
No empire, nor its lackey satellites, will bend the will of the Venezuelan people, who have decided to follow the route of true independence and build their path towards political, economic, and social prosperity, as has been demonstrated to the world in recent years.
Caracas, February 12, 2024
Evo Morales’ reaction
Former president and indigenous leader of Bolivia, Evo Morales, stated that the theft of the Boeing 747 cargo jet once again shows the United States’ lack of respect for international law.
Through social media, Morales sent a message of solidarity and support to the Venezuelan people and President Nicolás Maduro’s government, stating that these actions will not weaken the Bolivarian Revolution.
“The theft of the EMTRASUR plane from the Venezuelan people by the United States government is further proof that they have no respect for international law. We condemn this theft and stand in solidarity with the government of our brother, President Nicolás Maduro. No action or aggression will weaken the Bolivarian Revolution,” Morales wrote on social media.