Pakistan on Monday expressed profound concern over the rapidly evolving situation in Venezuela, warning the United Nations Security Council that unilateral military action undermines international law and risks triggering long-term instability with unpredictable consequences.

Addressing an emergency meeting of the 15-member Security Council, Pakistan’s Acting Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Usman Jadoon, said the use of force without authorisation contravenes the core principles of the UN Charter, including respect for sovereignty, territorial integrity and non-interference in internal affairs.

The meeting was convened following a US military operation launched over the weekend in Caracas, during which American special forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, in a night-time raid. The operation took place on Saturday and was followed by President Donald Trump’s announcement that Washington would temporarily govern the oil-rich South American nation until a transition was put in place.

Ambassador Jadoon told the Council that such unilateral actions set “dangerous precedents” that erode the foundations of the global legal framework and threaten the doctrine of sovereign immunity. He cautioned that history had repeatedly shown that military interventions often fuel instability, leading to outcomes that remain “unpredictable and uncontrollable” for years.

He said the situation was unfolding at a time when the world was already grappling with multiple crises, adding that further destabilisation in Latin America would pose serious risks to both regional and international peace and security