Senior White House official John Bolton on Sunday denied that the US was involved in the detonation of several drones on Saturday in what is being described as a failed assassination attempt on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
« I can say unequivocally there is no US government involvement in this at all, » Bolton said in a Sunday interview, cited by Reuters.
The senior Trump appointee raised the possibility that Maduro’s own government was responsible for the explosions as a move to consolidate power and crack down on the political opposition, noting the five-year collapse of Venezuela’s economy and subsequent unrest.
« It could be a lot of things, from a pretext set up by the Maduro regime itself to something else, » Bolton claimed, calling on Maduro to show proof of his accusations.
« If the government of Venezuela has hard information that they want to present to us that would show a potential violation of US criminal law, we will take a serious look at it, » Bolton stated, cited by Reuters.
Responsibility for the Saturday blasts was claimed by an obscure Caracas paramilitary group describing themselves as ‘National Movement of Soldiers in T-shirts.’
Maduro, his wife and other members of his cabinet were unharmed in the purported attacks.
The oil-rich South American country is undergoing a deep economic crisis, as the fossil-fuel economy suffers from declining revenue and sustainable power technologies such as solar and wind see huge gains in the global energy marketplace.
Out-of-control hyperinflation — coupled with widespread malnutrition — in Venezuela has seen many flee to neighboring Brazil and Colombia.
