Lula States CELAC Summit "Makes No Sense" Without Addressing U.S. Attacks

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva stated this Tuesday that the upcoming CELAC-EU summit in Colombia "makes no sense" if it does not address the United States' attacks on vessels off the coast of South America.

Lula mentioned he is considering attending the summit despite his busy schedule, with the intention of "defending the countries of Latin America."

"The CELAC meeting only makes sense at this moment if we discuss this issue of U.S. warships here in the seas of Latin America," Lula asserted during a press conference with international news agencies.

The Brazilian leader recalled discussing the Venezuela issue with his American counterpart, Donald Trump, emphasizing that the solution must be political and that "Latin America is a zone of peace."

"I do not want us to reach a land invasion. I told President Trump, and I repeat to you, that political problems are not solved with weapons. They are solved with dialogue," Lula explained in response to a question about Venezuela.

Lula also assured that Brazil has "every interest" in helping resolve the conflict and suggested that if the United States wants to fight drug trafficking, it should "be trying to help these countries" rather than "shooting" at them.

"The police have every right to combat drug trafficking and the responsibility to do so, and the Americans could be trying to help those countries, not trying to be shooting at those countries," he emphasized.

The Brazilian president stressed that the only admissible conflict in Latin America is a "verbal" one.

"The only conflict we want is a verbal one that does not harm or take lives, that does not destroy bridges, that does not destroy railways, that does not destroy houses, and that also does no harm. We do not need a dispute in Latin America," Lula added.

Military Context

The United States has conducted a military deployment in the Caribbean in recent months and has carried out a series of airstrikes against civilian vessels, in Caribbean waters near Venezuela and in the Pacific, which it accuses of drug trafficking.

Since the beginning of September, at least 60 people have been killed by these attacks, which the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, has condemned and described as "extrajudicial executions."

Despite the military pressure on Caracas, Trump and his Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, have denied that the United States is preparing to attack Venezuela.