President Nicolás Maduro of Venezuela ordered a temporary shutdown of air and maritime traffic with three Caribbean neighbors on Friday, accusing smugglers there of seeking to plunder his country.
In a televised address, Mr. Maduro said he had halted all flights and ship traffic to Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao for 72 hours. He accused the three countries of running black markets by siphoning everything from copper to food before selling the items.
“They take away gold from this country illegally, and make it legal to sell there; they take away coltan, they take away diamonds, they take away all food products,” Mr. Maduro said. “I didn’t want to take a measure like this one, but I am ready to take even more radical measures.”
In a televised address, Mr. Maduro said he had halted all flights and ship traffic to Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao for 72 hours. He accused the three countries of running black markets by siphoning everything from copper to food before selling the items.
“They take away gold from this country illegally, and make it legal to sell there; they take away coltan, they take away diamonds, they take away all food products,” Mr. Maduro said. “I didn’t want to take a measure like this one, but I am ready to take even more radical measures.”