MOSCOW, Dec 18 (Reuters) - Russia's Foreign Ministry said on Thursday it hoped that U.S. President Donald Trump's administration would not make a fatal mistake over Venezuela and said Moscow was concerned about U.S. decisions that threatened international shipping.
Trump on Tuesday ordered a "blockade" of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela as Washington tries to increase pressure on President Nicolas Maduro's government.
There has been an effective embargo in place after the U.S. seized a sanctioned oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela last week, with loaded vessels carrying millions of barrels of oil idling in Venezuelan waters rather than risk seizure.
"We note the continuous and deliberate escalation of tensions around Venezuela, a country friendly to us. Of particular concern is the unilateral nature of decisions that pose a threat to international shipping," the Russian ministry said in a statement.
"We hope that the D. Trump administration, which is characterised by a rational and pragmatic approach, will not make a fatal mistake."
Moscow favoured a normalisation of dialogue between Washington and Caracas and hoped the U.S. would not wade into a situation that would have "unpredictable consequences for the entire Western Hemisphere", it added, saying Russia supported "the Maduro government's course".
Separately, the Kremlin called for countries in the region to show restraint.
"We see tensions rising in the region and consider this to be potentially very dangerous," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
"President Putin recently had a telephone conversation with President Maduro. And, of course, we call on all countries in the region to exercise restraint in order to avoid any unpredictable developments."
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin, Guy Faulconbridge and Gleb Stolyarov; Editing by Andrew Osborn and Alison Williams)
