The United States, which deployed a significant military contingent on the coast of Venezuela, offered Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro the option of “going to Russia” or another country, an American senator said this Sunday (30). President Donald Trump dramatically escalated his threats against Venezuela when he warned Saturday that that country’s airspace should be considered closed as long as the U.S. military maintains a significant presence in the region. Although Trump has not publicly threatened to use force against Maduro, he declared in recent days that efforts to stop Venezuelan drug trafficking “on land” would begin “very soon.” “In fact, we gave Maduro the opportunity to leave,” Republican Markwayne Mullin, member of the US Senate Armed Forces Committee, said this Sunday on CNN. “We said he could go to Russia or another country.” See the videos that are trending on g1 When asked if Trump planned to attack Venezuela, the Oklahoma senator responded: “No, he made it very clear that we are not going to send troops to Venezuela. What we are trying to do is protect our own coasts.” Since September, the United States has launched bombings against suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean, resulting in at least 83 deaths. Washington claims that Maduro leads an alleged drug cartel. Maduro denies this and accuses Washington of using a pretext to overthrow him, bring about a change of regime in Venezuela and seize the country’s oil reserves. On Saturday, his government ordered military maneuvers off the Venezuelan coast. In recent days, constant activity by American fighter planes has been recorded just a few dozen kilometers off the Venezuelan coast, according to aircraft tracking websites. The New York Times revealed that Trump and Maduro had recently spoken by phone about a possible meeting in the United States. Trump confirmed the conversation this Sunday, without giving details.
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US suggested Maduro ‘go to Russia’, says Republican senator
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