Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has declared the regime of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro as illegitimate in a statement delivered to the United Nations Security Council.
Pompeo blasted the incumbent’s regime as “criminally incompetent” in his Thursday address where he also said America is ready to provide $20 million in “humanitarian assistance” to Venezuelans.
MOMENTS AGO: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced U.S. is ready to provide $20M in humanitarian relief for Venezuela https://t.co/0zwLBLgZKM pic.twitter.com/HSu9VPZNja
— CBS News (@CBSNews) January 24, 2019
“As a friend of the Venezuelan people, we stand by to help them even more, to help them begin the process of rebuilding their country and their economy from the destruction wrought by the criminally incompetent and illegitimate Maduro regime,” said Pompeo. “Our support for Venezuela’s democratic hopes and dreams is in sharp contrast to the authoritarian regimes across the globe who have lined up to prop up former president Maduro.”
Pompeo’s speech echoed a State Department letter published Wednesday saying Maduro has no legal authority to break diplomatic relations.
U.S. will conduct diplomatic relations with #Venezuela through the government of interim President Guaido. U.S. does not recognize the #Maduro regime. U.S. does not consider former president Maduro to have the legal authority to break diplomatic relations. https://t.co/DBS4GiGEWI pic.twitter.com/gQZJuS1xfn
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) January 24, 2019
Around the world, lines are being drawn by nations over who they recognize as the leader of the collapsing nation, according to Conflict News.
Supporting Juan Guaido as interim president
🇺🇸USA
🇨🇦Canada
🇧🇷Brazil
🇵🇾Paraguay
🇨🇴Colombia
🇵🇪Peru
🇪🇨Ecador
🇨🇷Costa Rica
🇦🇷Argentina
🇨🇱Chile
🇬🇹Guatemala
🇽🇰Kosovo
🇭🇳HondurasSupporting current President Nicolás Maduro
🇲🇽Mexico
🇨🇺Cuba
🇧🇴Bolivia
🇹🇷Turkey
🇷🇺Russia
🇸🇾Syria#Venezuela— Conflict News (@Conflicts) January 24, 2019
Correspondingly, without mentioning Maduro by name, Russia has warned the U.S. against military intervention in Venezuela.
“Venezuela is friendly to us and is our strategic partner,” said Russia’s deputy foreign minister. “We have supported them and will support them.”
“We consider that [U.S. military intervention] would be a catastrophic scenario that would shake the foundations of the development model which we see in Latin America.”
