CNN exclusive: Maduro tells people in the US to unite with Venezuela for peace of the Americas

The people of the United States should unite with Venezuela for the peace of the Americas, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro told CNN’s Stefano Pozzebon in the middle of a rally in Caracas on Thursday.

His exclusive remarks come amid heightened tensions with the US, which has deployed warships to the Caribbean to target what it claims are drug trafficking vessels from Venezuela. Though Washington insists the military buildup is aimed at disrupting the flow of narcotics to the United States, Caracas believes the US is really trying to force regime change.

Maduro urged the US against entering another prolonged conflict, asking its people in Spanish: “To unite for the peace of (the Americas). No more…