国际英语新闻:Venezuela denounces detaining of ship carrying food inputs

CARACAS, Aug. 7 (Xinhua) -- Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez on Wednesday denounced the detaining of a ship headed to Venezuela with primary materials for food production.

The ship was stopped at the Panama Canal.

"Venezuela is denouncing to the world that, right now, a ship carrying 25,000 tons of soybean meal for food production in our country is currently being detained in the Panama Canal," Rodriguez said on Twitter.

The vice president blamed the incident on the virtual trade embargo imposed by the White House and formalized by U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday, when he issued an executive order freezing all Venezuelan state assets in the United States.

"The owner of the ship, which carries vital food supplies, was informed by the insurance company that it could not bring the cargo to Venezuela in keeping with the unlawful sanctions," she said.

Holding the ship constitutes a violation of the United Nations Charter and of international law, said Rodriguez.

"Venezuela demands the UN stop this serious attack by the government of Donald Trump," she added.

Venezuela broke off diplomatic ties with the United States at the beginning of the year, after Washington refused to recognize President Nicolas Maduro's reelection to a second term and endorsed opposition leader Juan Guaido as "interim president" of the country.