WASHINGTON: The United States (US) still does not consider Nicolas Maduro (pix) “the legitimate leader of Venezuela,” despite the Venezuelan opposition’s recent move to dissolve its “interim government.”
“We recognise the 2015 National Assembly. We will continue to enforce our sanctions programme against the Maduro regime,” reported Anadolu Agency quoting State Department spokesman Ned Price saying at a news conference.
“We will calibrate that sanctions programme, as we said before, based upon what we see from the Maduro regime in terms of advancing the prospect for the Venezuelan people achieving their democratic aspirations,” said Price.
The Venezuelan opposition on Friday voted to dissolve an “interim government” led by Juan Guaido, who had been recognised by many countries, including the US.
Asked about the recent development, Price said: “We’ll continue to coordinate with him (Guaido) as a member of the 2015 National Assembly and with other like-minded democratic actors in Venezuela to support the Venezuelan people in their aspirations for democracy, rule of law and prosperity.”
On Sunday, President Maduro said he was willing to work toward normalising relations with the US, despite the continued sanctions crippling his country.
Maduro cut off relations with Washington in 2019, when the administration of then-President Donald Trump recognised Guaido as Venezuela’s “interim president.”-Bernama