The Venezuelan opposition "met the army," says Juan Guaidó

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The Venezuelan opposition leader, Juan Guaidó, said he had had secret talks with the army to get support for overthrowing President Nicolás Maduro.

Mr. Guaidó declared himself acting president at the beginning of the month and was immediately recognized by the United States and several Latin American countries.

The major powers of Russia and China support Maduro, and military support is seen as crucial to his stay in power.

The crisis comes as Maduro begins a second term after controversial polls.

Many opposition candidates were prevented from running or being imprisoned.

About three million people have fled Venezuela due to serious economic problems and violence has increased in recent weeks.

US President Donald Trump tweeted on Wednesday that he had spoken to Mr. Guaidó and supported his "historic accession to the presidency", writing in a second tweet that "The fight for freedom has begun!"

British Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt is expected to urge European countries to impose sanctions on Maduro government officials on Thursday, after also meeting with Guaidó on Wednesday.

What did Mr. Guaidó say?

"We had clandestine meetings with members of the armed forces and security forces," Guaidó writes in a New York Times article.

"The withdrawal of the army's support of Mr. Maduro by the army is crucial to enabling a change of government, and the majority of those on duty agree that the country's recent difficulties are unsustainable ".

The article also states that the opposition offered an amnesty to the armed forces "declared not guilty of crimes against humanity".

Mr. Guaidó, however, did not specify who he had spoken to in the army or what their positions were.

Venezuela's highest military representative to the United States, Col. José Luis Silva, defected, but high-ranking military figures in Venezuela supported Maduro.

• Who is Juan Guaidó?
• The crisis in seven charts

As president of Venezuela's National Assembly, Guaidó said the constitution allowed him to badume power temporarily when the president was deemed illegitimate.

The Venezuelan Supreme Court, however, banned the opposition leader from leaving the country and froze his bank accounts.

The Venezuelan president had previously told the Russian news agency RIA that he was ready to hold talks with the opposition so that we could speak for the sake of Venezuela. "

He added that he was not ready to accept the ultimatums or the blackmail, and insisted that he had the support of the Venezuelan army, accusing the deserters of conspiring to prepare a coup d'etat.

The armed forces played a key role in supporting his government, with many officers holding ministerial positions or other influential positions.

According to badysts, some members of the army may also be reluctant to change sides for fear of being held accountable for alleged corruption and rights violations despite the offer of amnesty.

What happened on the other?

Mr. Guaidó's text was published while new demonstrations began against Mr. Maduro.

Guillermo Olmo, of the BBC in Caracas, said Wednesday's protests were modest, in line with calls for opposition to small-scale actions, but the protest movement is growing in the poorest areas, once considered strongholds.

At the same time, a Russian airliner who made a surprise landing in Caracas on Monday left the country. Member of the National Assembly and former central bank economist Jose Guerra said central bank officials told him that the plane had come for 20 tons of gold. of the country's central bank.

However, on Wednesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he was not aware of such plans.

US Councilor for National Security John Bolton warned companies do not treat "gold, oil or other Venezuelan products" stolen from the people by "Maduro Mafia".

In other developments:

• A Venezuelan NGO claimed that Maduro's government used a paramilitary police force to commit extrajudicial killings "in the context of demonstrations" in disadvantaged areas. The Venezuelan program for education and action in the field of human rights announced Monday that 35 such homicides had occurred since the beginning of the protests
• Five foreign journalists – two Colombians and one Spanish working for the Spanish news agency Efe and two French television reporters – were arrested by the Venezuelan authorities, while two others from Chile were deported after 14 hours of detention. Two Venezuelan journalists were also arrested but later released. Colombia and Spain have called for their release, but the Venezuelan Foreign Minister said he entered the country without a work permit. Efe says his staff is detained by intelligence services
• The opposition has called for major national and international protests on Saturday.

What is the international reaction?

The United States and more than 20 other countries supported Mr. Guaidó.

On Monday, the United States imposed restrictions on the oil company PDVSA, a state-owned company.

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Maduro has the support of Russia, China and Turkey.

Russian authorities have denied reports that mercenaries from the country were sent to protect his life.

Meanwhile, Mexico and Uruguay have announced plans to hold a conference of "neutral" countries on Feb. 7 in Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay, to debate the crisis.

US officials have previously said all options "are on the table" to resolve the Venezuelan crisis, which observers have taken to include possible military action.

Mr. Bolton also participated in a press conference with a notepad bearing the words "5,000 soldiers in Colombia", bordering Venezuela.

The Lima group, an organization composed of 14 countries, including Canada, created in 2017 to find a peaceful solution to the crisis, has opposed any military intervention in the country.