A Reuters source talks about Russia's "sphere of influence" after the US operation in Venezuela. Kyiv responded

One of the Russian interlocutors of Reuters on the background of the US operation in Venezuela said that Moscow also allegedly has a "sphere of influence." These words were criticized by Ukrainian diplomatic spokesman Heorhiy Tykhyi, recalling about "mutiny" of Wagner terorists' head Yevgeny Prigozhin in 2023.

"Russia has lost an ally in Latin America. But if this is an example of Trump's Monroe Doctrine in action, as it seems to be, then Russia also has its own sphere of influence," an anonymous senior Russian source told Reuters.

The doctrine of 19th-century American president James Monroe, to which the media interlocutor refers, proclaimed the Western Hemisphere as Washington's zone of influence.

In response, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tykhyi said that "Russian "sources" are spewing hot air about "zones of influence."

"I wonder where the borders of their zone of influence were when Prigozhin’s gang marched on Moscow, making them tremble with fear. Perhaps it was limited to [dictator] Putin’s poop suitcase. And it still is," he wrote.

• The day before pro-Russian Venezuelan dictator Maduro and his wife, who were taken to the US by the American military, were charged in a New York court.