Pax Christi International condemns US attacks on Venezuela

Following the military aggression carried out by the Government and the Armed Forces of the United States of America against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela on the night of 3 January 2026, Pax Christi International immediately issued a statement strongly condemning the operation.

Such displays of force, the statement reads, stand in clear opposition to international law and risk legitimising similar actions by the most powerful States.

Echoing the words of Pope Leo XIV, Pax Christi International calls for the immediate cessation of military actions in Venezuela, continuing to stand firmly on the side of a just and disarmed peace.

The full statement follows:

Pax Christi International condemns the grave violation of international law by the Government and Armed Forces of the United States of America through the military aggression carried out in the early morning of January 3, 2026, against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.

This act of interventionist ("large-scale strike") directed against the territory and civilian population constitutes an affront to world peace and a direct threat to the foundations of sovereign coexistence among States.

The violation of international sovereignty by the United States represents a very dangerous precedent that risks justifying and legitimizing further violations of this kind by the armed forces of the most powerful nations, plunging us into an uncontrolled situation of injustice and violence.

Pax Christi International, as a global peace movement with consultative status at the United Nations, calls on the international community to demand compliance with international law, an immediate cessation of military actions in Venezuela, and, from its Catholic faith, appeals to the international Catholic community to embrace the recurring calls of Pope Leo XIV for nonviolence and a "disarmed and disarming"peace that restores international order and reinstates the role of the Charter of the United Nations and the Proclamation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace.

We will continue to uphold the principle of the self-determination of peoples and stand in solidarity with the Venezuelan people in the respect for their human rights, including the right to a dignified life for the community now in the diaspora.