MOSCOW, January 28. /TASS/. Russia insists on the illegality of the seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by the Americans and says the UN is the only mechanism to protect the Venezuelan leader, Chairman of the Association of Lawyers of Russia Sergey Stepashin said.
"Legally, it will probably be difficult to achieve this," Stepashin said when TASS asked him whether there are legal ways that Russia can use to free the Venezuelan leader.
"The only thing we can do is raise the question that this (Maduro’s capture - TASS) is illegal, which we are doing through the UN Security Council," the former prime minister added. "Other institutions just don’t work today, unfortunately."
On January 3, the United States carried out military strikes in Caracas and captured Maduro and his wife. On January 5, they appeared before the Federal Court for the Southern District of New York, which charged them with involvement in drug trafficking. Maduro and his wife pleaded not guilty. Delcy Rodriguez, who served as executive vice president under Maduro, took over as head of state.