Venezuela's National Assembly on Tuesday passed a law aimed at guaranteeing and protecting freedom of navigation and trade against piracy, blockades and other illicit international acts, following U.S. seizures of vessels carrying Venezuelan oil in the Caribbean.
The "Law to Guarantee Freedom of Navigation and Commerce Against Piracy, Blockades, and Other International Illicit Acts" was declared approved by National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez after a vote.
The legislation was passed during an extraordinary session and under urgent procedures, following U.S. seizures of vessels carrying Venezuelan oil on the high seas, and it allows prison sentences of up to 20 years for anyone who promotes or finances what it describes as piracy or blockades.
The law seeks to safeguard Venezuela's commercial and political relations from what authorities describe as threats by the United States.
On Monday, the National Assembly approved the bill in a first reading after it was proposed by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro as part of efforts to defend national sovereignty.
For almost four months, the U.S. has maintained a heavy military presence in the Caribbean, much of it off Venezuela's coast, purportedly to combat drug trafficking -- a claim Venezuela has denounced as a thinly veiled attempt to bring about regime change in Caracas.
The Pentagon has sunk more than 28 alleged drug vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific Ocean since early September, killing at least 104 people aboard.
Venezuela's National Assembly passes law to protect navigation, trade freedom
The recent 2026 Zhongguancun Forum (ZGC Forum) Annual Conference in Beijing has impressed international guests with its focus on deeper integration of technological and industrial innovation, highlighting how China's innovative advances are reshaping daily life.
The five-day forum, themed "Full Integration Between Technological and Industrial Innovation," wrapped up in Chinese capital on Sunday after bringing together more than 1,000 participants from over 100 countries and regions around the world.
More than 560 cutting-edge achievements were unveiled at the event, ranging from embodied intelligent robots and brain-computer interfaces to breakthroughs in quantum applications and 6G research and development.
The venue for the forum also showcased a number of these innovative creations to visitors, who were able to enjoy a fresh cup of coffee prepared by a humanoid barista, as well as be throughly entertained by robots performing dances or even playing piano.
Given the presence of these advanced humanoid robots, international participants shared the common view that innovation is no longer confined to laboratories but is now permeating every aspect of daily life.
"The deepest impression is actually to see how much AI is across everywhere," said Anders Karlsson, vice president of Elsevier, a global leader providing advanced information and decision support to accelerate progress in science and healthcare worldwide.
"The Zhongguancun Forum has become a very international window on innovation. We can find out annually how innovation is driving [and a key] component of growth of this wonderful country," said Vincenzo Lipardi, president and co-founder of SPICI, an Italian company assisting businesses and startups with strategic consulting services.
"As a scientist and as a worker of the United Nations system, I'm really pleased to see integration of science, technology and sustainability," said Shahbaz Khan, director of the UNESCO Regional Office for East Asia.
One of the forum's key themes was around opening up and striving for greater cooperation, which demonstrated to the wider world that China's innovation aims to break down barriers and share opportunities, so as to enable the global community to advance together.
"It's my first time attending the forum. And I'm very surprised that you have a very high level of innovation. China is open to ideas. Openness is the way to make innovations," said Prof. Hussein Sherief, a member of the International Committee for Scientific and Technical Data (CODATA).
Int'l guests hail integration of technology, innovation at Beijing forum
