Earlier, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo reiterated that the US might use armed force in Venezuela to overthrow the democratically elected government “if that’s what’s required.”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has warned his US counterpart Mike Pompeo that the continuation of the US’s “aggressive steps” toward Venezuela is fraught with “serious consequences.”
“It was indicated that the continuation of aggressive steps is fraught with the most serious consequences. Only the Venezuelan people have the right to determine their destiny, for which dialogue between all political forces in the country is needed, and for which the government has long called for. Destructive pressure from outside, especially force, has nothing to do with the democratic process,” Lavrov said, according to a statement published on the Russian Foreign Ministry’s website.
Lavrov spoke to Pompeo by telephone on Wednesday, one day after Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido announced a “final phase” in the opposition’s bid to seize power in the Latin American country.
The telephone call was requested by the US side, with other issues, including future Russian-US contacts and the humanitarian situation in Syria also touched upon, according to the foreign ministry.
Earlier, Secretary Pompeo said that while the US would prefer to see a peaceful ‘transition’ in Venezuela, it would not take the military option off the table. “Military action is possible. If that’s what’s required, that’s what the United States will do,” Pompeo said.
