UK Government accused of double standards over US military action in Venezuela

Plaid Cymru has condemned what it described as “double standards” by the UK Government, accusing ministers of moral inconsistency in their response to recent US military action in Venezuela.

Ben Lake MP, Plaid Cymru’s foreign affairs spokesperson said the Prime Minister’s refusal to state whether US strikes breached the United Nations Charter stood in stark contrast to the Government’s unequivocal condemnation of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Plaid Cymru argued that such selective application of international law risks undermining the rules-based international order the UK claims to defend.

Mr Lake said the UK must be prepared to challenge violations of international law “whether they be friend or foe”. He warned that failing to do so weakens global norms designed to protect sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Highlighting remarks made by the Foreign Secretary in September 2025, when Yvette Cooper described Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as “an assault on the United Nations Charter and its most foundational principles”, the MP for Ceredigion Preseli said the same clarity was now absent in the Government’s response to US intervention in Venezuela.

“When Russia violated Ukraine’s sovereignty, UK Government ministers rightly spoke with moral clarity, condemning it as an assault on the UN Charter and the foundations of a rules-based international order.

“The Government’s failure to condemn the United States for violating Venezuela’s sovereignty underlines a selective approach to those same principles.”

“As a permanent member of the UN Security Council, the UK must be unyielding in its commitment to a rules-based international order, no matter how imperfect it may be,” he added.

Responding in the Commons on Monday, Ms Cooper said she had raised the importance of complying with international law in discussions with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. She said it was for the US to set out the legal basis for its actions, adding that the situation in Venezuela was being discussed at the UN Security Council. The Foreign Secretary stressed that the UK’s focus was on avoiding further instability and supporting a peaceful transition to democracy that respected the will of the Venezuelan people.

'Democratic transition'

Prime Minister Keir Starmer also stopped short of explicitly saying whether the US had breached international law. While describing international law as an “anchor” for Venezuela’s future and reiterating the UK’s desire for a peaceful democratic transition, he said it was ultimately for the US to justify its actions.

Concerns about the wider implications of the intervention have also been raised elsewhere in the UK. Scotland’s First Minister, John Swinney, warned that the US action had set a “very dangerous precedent” and echoed concerns expressed by the UN Secretary-General about declining adherence to the rules-based system.

Elsewhere, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said Britain should work closely with the United States on foreign policy matters, not “snipe from the sidelines”.

The Tory leader said her party understood why Donald Trump had bombed Venezuela and kidnapped its leader Nicolas Maduro in the early hours of Saturday, in its “national interest”.

Aggressive

Responding to Ms Cooper in the Commons, Mrs Badenoch said: “While the likes of China have been strategic and aggressive in strengthening their influence across the world, including South America, the west has been slow.

“Foreign policy should serve our national interest. It should be about keeping Britain safe. We should be clear-eyed. The United States is our closest security partner. We must work with them seriously, not snipe from the sidelines.”