US reiterates support for Venezuela’s interim President Guaido
Washington, July 3 (efe-epa).- The United States on Friday reiterated its support for opposition leader Juan Guaidó, recognized by Washington as the interim president of the crisis-ridden Venezuela.
In a message on the eve of Venezuela’s Independence Day to be celebrated on Sunday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated in a statement that Washington was committed to a “peaceful and democratic transition” of the South American country.
“Today, the Venezuelan people carry the spirit of Simon Bolivar as they seek a democratic transition from the authoritarian rule that is abetted by nefarious foreign infiltrators that enable repression and corruption. This struggle for freedom and democracy will not end until its goals are realized,” Pompeo said.
The secretary of state stressed that the daily struggle of Venezuelans in defending their rights “brings them a day closer to truly celebrating Independence”.
“Democracy will not be intimidated. We remain committed to supporting Venezuela’s peaceful, democratic transition and free and fair presidential and parliamentary elections. The United States, and nearly 60 nations, stand with Venezuelans inside Venezuela and the more than five million forced to flee.”
On June 22, President Donald Trump said on his Twitter that he would only meet with his Venezuelan counterpart, Nicolás Maduro, to discuss his “peaceful departure from power” shortly after he stated in an interview that he was open to having that meeting.
Trump’s tweet came a day after the president in an Oval Office interview with digital newspaper Axios suggested that he has had second thoughts about his decision to recognize Guaidó as the legitimate leader of Venezuela and said he was open to meeting with Maduro.
Trump had considered the possibility of meeting Maduro during the 2018 UN General Assembly, but that did not happen.
Trump’s former National Security Advisor John Bolton has said in his new book that the president wanted to withdraw his support for Venezuelan opposition leader Guaidó just 30 hours after recognizing him in January 2019 as interim president because he believed he was projecting an image of a “child” in front of the “tough” president, Maduro. EFE-EPA
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