MOSCOW, December 17. /TASS/. The increased tension around Venezuela could have unpredictable consequences for the entire western hemisphere, said Alexander Shchetinin, Director of the Latin American Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry.

"We hope that the initiator of today’s tensions, which are escalating around Venezuela, will manage to prevent further escalation into a situation that could produce unpredictable consequences for the entire Western Hemisphere and avoid making critical mistakes," he said at a wreath-laying ceremony at the monument to the National Hero of the Republic, Simon Bolivar, in Moscow, marking the 195th anniversary of the liberator’s death.

"On this day, we reaffirm our solidarity with the Venezuelan people in the face of the challenging times they are going through. We confirm our support for the policies of the government [President] Nicolas Maduro, aimed at protecting the national interests and sovereignty of the motherland. Honor and glory to the national hero of Venezuela and the American continent, Simon Bolivar. Long live the friendship between the peoples of Russia and Venezuela," Shchetinin added.

Maduro has repeatedly warned that his country is facing the most serious threat of invasion in the last 100 years from the United States, which is eager to seize the world's largest proven oil reserves. Washington unfairly accuses Venezuela of not actively combating drug smuggling. The US Navy deployed a strike group of ships in the Caribbean Sea led by the aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford, a nuclear submarine, and more than 16,000 troops. Since September, the US army has destroyed at least 20 speedboats in the region, killing more than 80 people.