Juan Guaidó called for "more sanctions" from the European Union against Maduro

The leader of the Venezuelan opposition Juan Guaidó on Wednesday called for "more sanctions" from the European Union (EU) against Nicolás Maduro's regime, in statements to the German newspaper Bild.

"We are in a dictatorship and there must be pressure"said Guaidó, who proclaimed himself interim president of Venezuela last week.

"We need more sanctions from the European Union, as decided by the United States ", said the president of the Venezuelan Parliament, which ensures that the regime is "Absolutely corrupt."

Guaidó, 35, denounces repression in the country. "700 people were arrested during demonstrations in recent weeks, there are 300 political prisoners in prisons"he says.

The Leader of the Opposition suggests that he is himself in danger. "We all live under the threat of imprisonment or even murder, but that does not stop us from baduming our responsibilities"he adds.

The Venezuelan opposition has called for a protest for this Wednesday in order to try to convince the army that back to Maduro and recognize Guaidó.

Guaidó called on the population to take to the streets from 12:00 to 14:00 (16:00 to 18:00 GMT) to paralyze the country.

Spain, France, Germany and the United Kingdom on Saturday gave Nicolás Maduro "eight days" to call elections, under penalty of recognizing Guaidó the "president" of Venezuela as responsible for the organization of elections.

The Venezuelan president has declared Wednesday ready to call legislative elections and to negotiate with the opposition, in an interview with the Russian agency RIA Novosti, but he refuses to anticipate the presidential elections.

(With information from AFP)