President Donald Trump called on Russia to pull its troops out of Venezuela on March 27, following reports that two Russian military planes touched down in Caracas over the weekend with about 100 soldiers aboard.
“Russia has to get out,” Trump told reporters in the White House’s Oval Office. There, he was meeting with Fabiana Rosales, the wife of Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó.
When asked how the United States will force Russia out of the socialist Latin American country, Trump replied, “We’ll see.”
Rosales met with Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, and they expressed their support for Guaidó, who invoked the Venezuelan constitution to assume the interim presidency in January. About 50 countries, including the United States and most of South America, support him.
Guaidó has said Maduro’s regime isn’t legitimate.
“The United States views Russia’s arrival of military planes this weekend as an unwelcome provocation,” Pence told reporters March 27.
“We call on Russia today to cease all support of the Maduro regime and stand with Juan Guaidó, and stand with nations across this hemisphere and across the world until freedom is restored,” Pence continued.
Two Planes Land
Reports on March 24 said that an Ilyushin IL-62 passenger jet and an Antonov AN-124 military plane arrived at the airport in Caracas. A local journalist posted photos of the planes on Twitter.Russian and Venezuelan officials haven’t issued any statements about the two Russian planes.
An unnamed Russian official was quoted as saying that there was “nothing mysterious” about the visit. “It would be wrong to suggest this is some kind of major deployment,” another person said.
The move was blasted by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Pompeo called on the Kremlin to cease its “unconstructive behavior and join other nations, including the overwhelming majority of countries in the Western Hemisphere, who seek a better future for the Venezuelan people.”
Months ago, Russia sent strategic, nuclear-capable bombers to Venezuela.
Maduro Under Pressure
Maduro, over the weekend, stated there would be a shakeup in his government after months of turmoil.“We need to renew ourselves, refresh, improve, change,” she said, without detailing how.
Amid the calls for a new direction, Maduro also called on his supporters to mobilize and arm themselves to defend his socialist regime.