Morales: US Inciting Civil War in Venezuela

Local Editor

Bolivian President Evo Morales warned that Washington is pushing Venezuela towards a ‘civil war' because it wants access to the country's rich oil reserves, as he said during a summit at the Bolivian city of Santa Cruz on Thursday.
Addressing over 3,000 people at a Latin American Youth Summit in Santa Cruz on Thursday, Morales branded the US an "empire" with its eye on Venezuelan oil wealth.

Morales said that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was blameless in the recent wave of unrest in the country and accused Washington of orchestrating a civil war.

"I believe [the US] are trying to incite if not a coup d'état then a civil war from their empire," Morales said, adding that, "They are always going to sponsor internal conflict so that they can interfere and invade us to take control of our oil reserves."

Morales said there was no danger of a coup d'état in Bolivia since the government had ejected US Ambassador Phillip Golberg in 2008 after he was accused of collaborating in a plot to overthrow the government.

The world needs an "anti-imperialist, anti-capitalist and anti-colonial youth," said Morales, urging Latin Americans to stand together in solidarity with Venezuela.
Maduro announced last week that Venezuela was facing an "economic war" and as such his government intended to fight back with a new "offensive" to combat capitalism.

"This new economic offensive should bring prosperity to the people and the country. Neoliberalism speaks of growth, but growth for whom? For those that always had wealth, not the have-nots," Maduro said.

Maduro has previously blamed the strife in Venezuela on Washington, saying that the US is orchestrating the unrest with a view to overthrow the government.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team