CARACAS, January 4. /TASS/. The Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA) has strongly condemned the United States’ aggression against Venezuela and demanded an immediate release of its President Nicolas Maduro.

"The Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA) absolutely, categorically, and unequivocally condemns the act of war perpetrated by the Government of the United States of America against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in the early morning of January 3, through a direct military operation against civilian and military installations on its sovereign territory. This armed aggression constitutes a grave and deliberate violation of International Law, the Charter of the United Nations, the proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace, and all the principles that underpin peaceful coexistence among nations," it said in a statement.

"ALBA demands immediate proof of life for the Venezuelan Head of State and calls for his immediate and unconditional release, as well as absolute respect for his physical, political, and moral integrity. This act constitutes an international crime of extreme gravity and a direct affront to the sovereignty of nations," it stressed.

The Bolivarian Alliance reiterated its support for the Venezuelan people and government who demonstrated their ability to preserve internal stability, social peace and constitutional order in the face of external aggression.

Set up in 2004, the alliance includes Antigua and Barbuda, Venezuela, Grenada, Dominica, Cuba, Nicaragua, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, St. Kitts and Nevis, and Saint Lucia.

Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil Pinto said on January 3 that the United States had attacked civilian and military facilities in Caracas. He condemned Washington’s actions as a military aggression. A state of emergency has been imposed in Venezuela. US President Donald Trump has confirmed the attack on Venezuela. According to the US leader, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife have been captures and taken out of the country.