"I Grew Under Military Dictatorship in Nigeria": Kemi Badenoch Speaks on Trump's Action in Venezuela
- Kemi Badenoch called US military action in Venezuela morally justified despite legal ambiguities
- Drawing from her Nigerian childhood, Badenoch highlighted the realities of dictatorship under Maduro's regime
- UK government maintains cautious stance on Venezuela intervention, differentiating it from Greenland's political situation
UK Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has said the United States’ military action in Venezuela was morally justified.
This is even as she acknowledged uncertainty over its legal basis and warned it could undermine the rules-based international order.
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Speaking to the BBC, Badenoch said US President Donald Trump’s decision to remove Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro was understandable, describing Maduro’s government as brutal and authoritarian.
“Where the legal certainty is not yet clear, morally, I do think it was the right thing to do,” she said.
She added that she was “glad he’s gone”.
Kemi Badenoch: ‘I know what dictatorship looks like’
Drawing on her personal background, Badenoch said her views were shaped by her childhood experience in Nigeria, where she lived under military rule before relocating to the UK at the age of 16.
“I grew up under a military dictatorship, so I know what it’s like to have someone like Maduro in charge,” she said.
However, she stressed that while Venezuela’s situation justified international intervention in her view, similar logic could not be applied elsewhere.
Clear line drawn over Greenland
Badenoch said it was right for the UK and its allies to push back against Trump’s recent remarks about Greenland, which he has described as strategically vital to US national security.
“There is a big difference between democratic states and the gangster state in Venezuela. What happens in Greenland is up to Denmark and the people of Greenland," she said.
Trump has in recent days repeated threats to annex Greenland, a semi-autonomous Danish territory rich in minerals and strategically located in the Arctic.
UK avoids direct criticism of Washington
The UK government has so far refrained from directly condemning the US operation in Venezuela or stating whether it breached international law. Instead, ministers have reiterated the position that Maduro was an “illegitimate president”.
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However, several opposition figures, including Labour MPs and representatives of the Liberal Democrats, Green Party and the Scottish National Party, have urged the government to denounce the action as unlawful.
Ministers defend cautious diplomatic stance
Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the UK’s approach to Venezuela differed from its response to Greenland because Denmark is a Nato ally and a democratic state.
He also defended Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s careful handling of the issue, saying it reflected both Britain’s national interest and concern for the Venezuelan people.
“I appreciate there are others who have been more strident and more critical of the United States,” Streeting said.
US announces next step after invading Venezuela
Previously, Legit.ng reported that the United States has announced that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, would be charged with drug and terrorism offences after President Donald Trump's claim that the US forces captured them in a “large-scale strike” on Venezuela.
Speaking on the invasion, Attorney General Pamela Bondi confirmed the development, adding that Maduro and Flores were indicted in the Southern District of New York. She added that the Venezuelan was charged with illicit drug importation conspiracy, narco-terrorism conspiracy, conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices, and possession of machine guns and destructive devices, against the United States.
Source: Legit.ng
