Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has urged the country's farmers to organize themselves to "take up arms" in the event of an attack by the US military, denouncing that the South American nation is "under threat from the United States". "I trust the Ezequiel Zamora National Peasant Union that thousands, and I'm not exaggerating if I say millions, of farmers will be ready to defend the Republic if it is attacked by the North American empire," said the head of state, quoted by the broadcaster Vtv.
Maduro insisted that the country is "more united than ever" to defend "sovereignty, peace and the right to life" and sent a direct message to Washington: "Enough threats". His words come after the Bolivarian National Armed Forces launched military exercises and training programs as part of a new "territorial defense plan". Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López called the initiative a "milestone" in the "military revolution", stressing the commitment to defend "every inch of the homeland".
