In this June 22, 2021 photo, Venezuelan Foreign Affairs Minister Jorge Arreaza attends a press conference in Moscow. (YURI KOCHETKOV / POOL / AFP)
CARACAS – Imposing unilateral sanctions against Venezuela and other countries is "a crime against humanity" that the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court must investigate, Venezuelan Foreign Affairs Minister Jorge Arreaza said Wednesday.
"UN (United Nations) human rights experts describe the sanctions adopted against Venezuela and other countries as a 'punishment' against the 'innocent population,'" he tweeted, citing a release by the United Nations Human Rights Council denouncing unilateral sanctions.
Experts appointed by the UN body said that many people across the globe are denied the right to development because of unilateral coercive measures, according to the release.
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People in targeted countries like Venezuela, Cuba, Syria and Iran, said the experts, have been stuck in poverty "because they cannot get essential services like electricity, housing, water, gas and fuel, let along medicine and food."
The experts called on countries that impose unilateral sanctions to withdraw them or at least minimize them "to guarantee that the rule of law and human rights … are not affected."
According to the Venezuelan government, sanctions by the United States imposed since former U.S. President Donald Trump's administration have caused the South American country serious economic losses.
