Venezuelan President Maduro rejects Western ultimatum
On February 3, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro rejected the call of European Union (EU) countries to hold early presidential elections, after opposition leader Juan Guaido declared himself interim president of the country.
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| Venezuelan President Maduro. Photo: Reuters |
In an interview with Spanish television station Sexta, Mr Maduro stressed that he would not surrender to pressure from those calling for his resignation. “They are pushing us into a corner with ultimatums that are pushing us into a dangerous confrontation,” Mr Maduro said.
Spain, France, Germany, Britain, the Netherlands, Portugal and Austria have issued an ultimatum to Mr Maduro to hold early elections or they will recognise Mr Guaido as Venezuela's legitimate president.
Previously, President Maduro also said he only supported the proposal of the National Constituent Assembly (ANC) to hold early National Assembly elections this year to resolve problems that have existed in this legislative body since 2016.
Speaking at a ceremony to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Bolivarian Revolution in the capital Caracas, President Maduro affirmed that the Venezuelan Constituent Assembly has put the consideration of calling early elections this year on its agenda, and he fully supports the proposal, saying that the choice is up to the people.
On this occasion, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza called on the people of the whole country to heighten their vigilance everywhere to protect the homeland and not succumb to the information and psychological warfare being waged by the opposition.
Mr. Arreaza said that to protect the aspirations of the people and the Constitution of the Republic, the Venezuelan people need to promote solidarity to deal with all acts of intervention and invasion from abroad.
On January 21, the Supreme Constitutional Court (TSJ) of Venezuela declared the self-proclaimed leadership of the opposition-controlled National Assembly invalid, and affirmed that all actions of this body are unconstitutional. Currently, the legislative body with supreme power in Venezuela is the Constituent Assembly, elected since 2017.
