PEACE campaigners have warned Sir Keir Starmer to break with US President Donald Trump now before Britain is embroiled in a “full-scale conflict” over “oil and empire” as Britons join protests around the country on Saturday.

The Prime Minister’s tepid reaction to the US attack on Venezuela and its abduction of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores has already driven thousands out onto the streets this week.

Even more are expected this weekend at demonstrations in urban centres across the country on Saturday, including outside Downing Street at 1pm on and the US consulate in Edinburgh at 11am.

Campaigners called on the public to join them in keeping pressure on the government after the Labour leader this week said siding with Europe over the US would be a mistake in the wake of further US military threats on Greenland.

His reactions prompted further fury from activists, as the former human rights barrister also refused to say whether the US operations in Venezuela broke international law at PMQs.

Stop the War Coalition (StWC) convener Lindsey German told the Morning Star: “The British government should break with Trump and his far-right racist warmongering policies now before the world is embroiled in a full scale conflict for oil and empire.

“This week, we’ve seen illegal regime change in the form of kidnapping a head of state, the brazen theft of millions of barrels of Venezuelan oil, the seizure of an oil tanker on the high seas and military threats to Greenland.


“Keir Starmer refuses to condemn any of this, and indeed the British government is complicit in allowing use of bases and holding on to illegally seized Venezuelan gold.”

CND general secretary Sophie Bolt agreed, saying: “This protest against Trump’s war on Venezuela is absolutely critical.

“The use of force against Venezuela and the oil blockade are in clear breach of international law.

“The US’s brutal self-interest, which these attacks on Venezuela reveal, threatens all countries whose resources or geopolitical importance the US views as theirs for the taking.

“Britain needs to end its shocking complicity in this assault on Venezuela. It needs to refuse the use of British bases for US operations and end any military support.”  

She added: “This has nothing to do with British national security interests and everything to do with precipitating a global war, backed by the threat of nuclear war.”

This week, emergency rallies were already joined by thousands telling US forces “Hands off Venezuela!”

Protests took place this week in London, Sheffield, Cardiff, Newcastle, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Birmingham and Bristol.

A spokesman from the Venezuela Solidarity Campaign, co-organisers of Saturday’s peace rally along with the CND and StWC, called on the public to join them once more.

Ahead of the event, he told the Star: “It’s absolutely vital that we build pressure to push Keir Starmer to enforce international law. We must oppose American attacks on sovereign countries like it did in Venezuela.

“Trump is openly threatening to continue the bombing and rule Venezuela by military force.

“There has been strong opposition to this around the world, with the huge exception of UK and other European countries which have not issued clear condemnations of the attacks.”

Welsh peace and solidarity groups joined the calls to protest Britain’s complicity in the US “barbaric act of aggression.”

Stop the War Cymru, Cymru Cuba, Cymdeithas y Cymod and CND Cymru in a joint statement, called on the Welsh government to “condemn the US’s unprovoked attack on Venezuela.”

“Silence is complicity with this barbaric act of aggression,” they said, calling for members of the Senedd and the wider public to make their opposition heard and join protests in solidarity with the people of Venezuela.