VENEZUELAN President Nicolas Maduro called for a new world free from colonialism and imperialism as he addressed the United Nations general assembly on Wednesday.

His speech appeared to take aim at the United States, which has imposed crippling sanctions on the South American country in an effort to overthrow Mr Maduro’s government.

The socialist leader said that it was time for “a new human community … free of hegemonic empires.

“It must be liberated from any hegemonies or any empires’ attempts at economic, financial, military or political domination, liberated from those who, over centuries, plundered, dominated, exploited and oppressed people throughout the world with their old, rapacious colonialism,” he thundered from the rostrum at the gathering of world leaders in New York.

Although he didn’t reference the US by name, it is the only world power seeking unilateral domination of the global system and has imposed punitive sanctions on a number of countries, including Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua and Syria.

Washington’s aggressive stance against China risks a new cold war, with a military build-up in the region and the new Aukus security partnership raising tensions further.

“There are those who are today attempting to impose new forms of colonialism on our people, new forms of domination, looting, oppression and exploitation of people throughout the world.

“That is why in this general assembly … Venezuela is calling for a new world free from colonialism, a new world without imperialism, a new world without any dominant hegemony,” Mr Maduro added.

Earlier this year, Venezuela was among 17 countries, also including Nicaragua, China, Iran and Syria, to form the Group of Friends in Defence of the Charter of the United Nations.

The bloc aims to defend the UN charter and the principle of multilateralism, which it says “is currently under an unprecedented attack, which, in turn, threatens global peace and security.”