President Nicolas Maduro warns of a civil war in Venezuela unless the US and the Western nations stop intervening, and says Donald Trump will have ‘blood on his hands unless he stops’
Venezuela’s President Maduro refused to rule out a civil war to deal with crisis
He said US and other Western nations need to stop intervening in his affairs
Also warned that US President Trump risked ‘staining his hands with blood’
UK, France, and Spain, now recognise Juan Guaido as the interim president
Announcement came as Maduro failed to call elections before Sunday deadline
By SARA MALM
DAILYMAIL.COM
4 February 2019
President Nicolas Maduro has warned there may be a civil war in Venezuela unless foreign nations stop intervening in its ‘internal affairs’.
He said that the US, as well as other Western nations, needed to stop their ‘aggressiveness’ or President Donald Trump risked ‘staining his hands with blood’.
His threats came as a number of EU countries, including France, the UK, and Spain, announced that they recognise opposition leader Juan Guaido as the interim president, after Maduro failed to call a snap election before yesterday’s deadline.
In response, the Venezuelan government ‘expressed its most energetic rejection’ of their support for Guaido, and said it will revise bilateral relations with any country who does so.
Maduro said in an interview that aired on Spanish TV channel Antena 3 on Sunday: ‘We don’t accept ultimatums from anyone,’ adding: ‘I refuse to call for elections now – there will be elections in 2024.’
When asked if the current crisis could result in civil war, he said: ‘No-one could answer that question with certainty,’ adding that this depends on ‘the level of madness and aggressiveness of the northern empire [the US] and its Western allies.’
President Trump meanwhile said in an interview that aired on Sunday that military intervention in Venezuela was ‘an option.’
Maduro said: ‘We ask that nobody intervenes in our internal affairs… and we prepare ourselves to defend our country.
‘Stop. Stop. Donald Trump! You are making mistakes that are going to stain your hands with blood and you are going to leave the presidency stained with blood,’ he said according to the BBC.
Maduro was pictured on Sunday visiting a military base in Turiamo, north-western Venezuela, where he asked the troops to take care of the ‘union’ and ‘loyalty’ to the National Armed Forces.
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