BFF-08 Trump says US backs Venezuela’s ‘quest for freedom’: speech excerpts

333

ZCZC

BFF-08

US-POLITICS-TRUMP-SPEECH-VENEZUELA

Trump says US backs Venezuela’s ‘quest for freedom’: speech excerpts

WASHINGTON, Feb 6, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – President Donald Trump plans to ramp up
the pressure on Venezuela’s embattled leader Nicolas Maduro in his State of
the Union address on Tuesday, doubling down on US support for his challenger
Juan Guaido.

“We stand with the Venezuelan people in their noble quest for freedom,”
Trump is set to say, according to excerpts from his annual speech to Congress
— where the opposition leader’s envoy to Washington was among the top
guests.

Trump swiftly recognized Guaido after he proclaimed himself acting
president of Venezuela last month, and has not ruled out a military
intervention in the crisis-wracked country.

In contrast to Trump’s isolation on many international issues, his
recognition of Guaido has been followed by major Latin American powers such
as Brazil and Colombia with key European states including Britain, France,
Germany and Spain following suit on Monday.

Venezuela also marks an unusually forceful intervention in another country
by Trump, who has promised to pull US troops from Syria and Afghanistan and
has held back on reprimanding US allies over human rights.

But Trump has appeared to relish the fight against President Nicolas
Maduro, a leftist firebrand fond of criticizing US foreign policy who
presides over a crumbling economy in which food and basic supplies are scarce
and millions have fled to neighboring countries.

The United States has sought to squeeze Maduro both economically and
diplomatically, imposing sanctions that target his inner circle and ruling
that Venezuelan assets in the US banking system belong to the National
Assembly, which Guaido’s opposition forces control.

The latest front has been aid, with Guaido warning the opposition not to
block humanitarian assistance that he says is being stockpiled in Brazil,
Colombia and an unnamed Colombian island.

Trump’s national security adviser, John Bolton, met Tuesday in Washington
with Brazilian Foreign Minister Ernesto Araujo and promised coordination on
aid.

“We discussed mutual support for Venezuela’s Interim President Guaido,
including logistics for providing humanitarian assistance for the Venezuelan
people,” Bolton tweeted.

Many observers believe the key to Maduro’s survival is the military, whose
leadership still backs the government despite US appeals.

BSS/AFP/GMR/0832 hrs