The U. S., E. U., and the Lima Group all shun Nicolas Maduro, Venezuela’s socialist president they say won a sham election, in favor of opposition leader Juan Guaido.
Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro shows no sign of backing down as his far-left regime is rocked by a crisis that has brought opposition supporters out onto the streets, with governments across the world recognizing his political rival Juan Guaido as the country’s legitimate leader.
So far, the U. S., European Union (E. U.), and most members of the Lima Group are backing Guaido as the interim president of Venezuela and are urging Maduro—who won a second term in a 2018 election widely seen as a sham—to step aside peacefully.
But Russia, which provides military and economic assistance to Venezuela, has condemned those recognizing Guaido’s authority and put its support fully behind the Maduro regime.
As of Thursday morning, 16 people were reported killed and as many as 228 wounded in the clashes between opposition demonstrators and security forces, Spanish daily El Pais said.
Venezuela is in the grip of a painful economic crisis triggered by a collapse in oil prices that has led to hyperinflation and food shortages. Millions of Venezuelans have fled the crisis to other countries. Critics of the Venezuelan regime accuse it of corruption and economic mismanagement stemming back to Maduro’s predecessor, Hugo Chavez.
Guaido is president of the National Assembly and member of the social democratic Popular Will party. The National Assembly does not recognize Maduro’s re-election as legitimate because of a number of irregularities and a boycott by opposition supporters. Western countries, including the U. S., do not recognize the election result.
