Venezuelan crisis: the White House "will respond to threats against diplomats"



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Legend of the mediaThousands of others leave Venezuela in this new crisis

The United States warned Venezuela that any threat against US diplomats or opposition leader Juan Guaidó would be "significantly repressed".

National Security Advisor John Bolton said such "intimidation" would be "a serious breach of the rule of law".

His warning came a few days after the United States and more than 20 other countries recognized Mr. Guaidó as interim president.

At the same time, Guaidó called for anti-government protests on Wednesday and Saturday.

The political crisis in Venezuela now seems to be reaching its peak amid mounting opposition efforts to overthrow Maduro.

The president was sworn in for a second term earlier this month after an election tainted by a boycott of the opposition and allegations of voter fraud, triggering major protests.

On Sunday, Venezuela's highest military representative in the United States, Col. José Luis Silva, resigned from Maduro's government, claiming he had recognized Guaidó as president.

Later, Mr. Bolton went to Twitter to reiterate Washington's position, warning others against any form of "violence and intimidation".

Skip @AmbJohnBolton's Twitter 2 post

Any violence and intimidation directed against American diplomatic personnel, Venezuela's democratic leader, Juan Guiado, or the National Assembly itself, would constitute a serious violation of the rule of law and would provoke an important reaction. 2/2

– John Bolton (@AmbJohnBolton) January 27, 2019

End of Twitter post @AmbJohnBolton

Also on Twitter, Guaidó called for a "peaceful strike" of two hours to paralyze the country on Wednesday and a "big national and international gathering" on Saturday.

What is happening now?

On Saturday, several European countries, including Spain, Germany, France and the United Kingdom, said that they will recognize Mr Guaidó as president if the elections were not held. not convened within eight days.

But Maduro rejected the proposal, saying the ultimatum should be withdrawn.

"Venezuela is not tied to Europe – it's a total insolence," he told CNN Turk on Sunday.

Mr. Maduro added that he was ready to "engage in an in-depth dialogue" with those who opposed his presidency and that he had sent "many messages" to Donald Trump, but that He thought that the American president "despised us".

He then appeared during a military exercise held in the central state of Venezuela, in Carabobo, where he called for "unity, discipline and cohesion" to overcome what he was doing. He described it as a "coup attempt" by Mr. Guaidó.

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Mr. Maduro attended military exercises in Carabobo on Sunday

Maduro broke off relations with the United States last Thursday because of his country's support for Guaidó and ordered US envoys to leave Venezuela within 72 hours.

However, on Saturday night, when the deadline was due to expire, the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry announced that it would withdraw the eviction order and leave both parties 30 days to create "offices for the future". Interest in their respective countries.

Interest Offices are used when countries do not maintain formal diplomatic relations but wish to have a basic level of contact to represent their interests.

Washington had previously stated that it did not recognize the power of Mr. Maduro to order the release of his diplomats.

At the same time, Mr. Guaidó told the Washington Post that he was in talks with "army sympathizers" in Venezuela in an effort to strengthen his support for the presidency.

Who supports Maduro?

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Legend of the mediaWho is really in charge in Venezuela? Paul Adams of the BBC explains

Russia, China, Mexico and Turkey have publicly supported Maduro.

At a meeting of the UN Security Council on Saturday, Russia accused Washington of preparing a coup d'etat.

However, more than a dozen countries in Latin America and Canada have supported Mr. Guaidó as president.

In Europe, the ruling party, the left-wing party of Greece, supported Maduro.

Why is Maduro so unpopular?

Venezuela is in economic crisis: hyperinflation and shortages of basic necessities have hit the population hard and caused the flight of millions of people.

Maduro has faced internal opposition and ongoing international criticism for his track record on human rights and his management of the economy.

He was re-elected for a second term last year – but the elections were controversial and many opposition candidates were prevented from running for office or being jailed.

Supreme Court Justice Christian Zerpa escaped to the United States in January, telling reporters that the election "was not free or competitive."

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