Washington's strikes on alleged smuggler boats are unlawful, the Russian foreign minister has said.

The US would be better off targeting Belgium, recently described as an emerging "narco-state" by one of its own judges, rather than bombing small vessels off the coast of Venezuela, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday.

Speaking at a press conference, Lavrov denounced the maritime airstrikes authorized by the administration of US President Donald Trump, which Washington claims are aimed at drug smugglers operating in the Caribbean. The foreign minister called the attacks:

Lavrov was referring to a recent statement by a Belgian judge who wrote to the parliament that "mafia-like structures have taken root" in the country and that it is not an exaggeration to say "are we evolving into a narco-state."

While stressing that Moscow considers Venezuela a friendly nation, Lavrov said Russia has no plans to deploy military assets there.

Washington insists that its campaign targets "narcoterrorism," claiming legal authority under congressional counterterrorism powers. Trump has justified the strikes as part of a broader effort to combat the flow of fentanyl into the US.

According to the US Drug Enforcement Administration, Mexico is the main source of fentanyl entering the US, while Venezuela's involvement in global trafficking networks is limited primarily to serving as a stopover for cocaine shipments from South America.

Critics accuse Washington of using the narcotics narrative as a pretext for a potential regime change operation against Caracas.