Washington, – Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday accused Iran of providing “on the ground” support to the government of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, and assured that what Washington wants is for Venezuelans to be able to restore “their own democracy” without external interference
“We want the Venezuelan people not to be meddled by any country, be it Russia or China, now we have Iranians on the ground in Venezuela … The US wants all the countries out and allows the Venezuelan people restore its own democracy, “Pompeo said in an interview with Fox News on Sunday.
The head of the US Foreign Ministry pointed especially to the Kremlin when stating that “the Russians have to leave”, as, he recalled, already expressed the US President, Donald Trump, in a published tweet “makes some weeks. “
However, Trump himself sowed controversy on this point on Friday by contradicting US intelligence reports after speaking on the phone with Russian President Vlimirimir Putin.
“I think it’s a very positive conversation, the one that I’ve had with President Putin about Venezuela, he’s not thinking at all of getting involved in Venezuela, other than that he wants to see something positive happen in Venezuela, and I feel the same,” Trump told reporters after the call ended.
Likewise, Pompeo insisted on Sunday accusing Cuba of wanting to control Venezuela.
“We know of the historic presence of a couple of thousands of Cuban thugs, who essentially control that country today,” he argued.
Venezuela is facing a political and social crisis that was accentuated after the leader of the Parliament, Juan Guaidó, declared himself interim president on January 23 invoking some articles of the Venezuelan Constitution and obtained the support of a large part of the countries of the continent. American and a score of European nations.
The Venezuelan opposition, which does not recognize the new six-year term that Nicolás Maduro swore on January 10, considering the elections of May last year illegitimate, assures that the country is going through a “complex humanitarian emergency” and has asked for help from the international community to attend to it.
Pompeo did not enter today to value the declarations of some members of the American Government, like the acting secretary of the Department of Defense, Patrick Shanahan, who have assured that Washington maintains “all the options on the table”, giving to understand that an intervention American military in Venezuela is possible.
The secretary expressed his confidence that it will be the Venezuelans themselves who will eventually overthrow President Maduro, although he acknowledged not knowing “when” could happen.
“If you look at where this country was ninety days ago, the Venezuelan people should be very proud, they are much closer to restoring democracy,” said Pompeo. (EFEUSA).
