US Meddle In Venezuelan Affairs Is Regrettable: Plasencia

On Thursday, Foreign Affairs Minister Felix Plasencia rejected that U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration recognized opposition politician Juan Guaido as interim president of Venezuela before the U.S. Lower House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee.

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"It is regrettable that Biden insists on the old and defeated interventionist strategy against our country and refuses to accept that the majority of Venezuelans support President Nicolas Maduro, who was democratically re-elected in 2018," Plasencia stressed.

"I urge the U.S. President to stop meddling in the internal political affairs of my country and respect its sovereignty. If he has anything to say about our government, he should have a peer-to-peer conversation with our authorities, as provided by the international conventions," he added.

On Wednesday, U.S. State Department Assistant Secretary for the Americas Kevin O'Reilly alleged that the Nov. 21 Venezuelan subnational elections on Sunday do not qualify to be "fair or free."

"The Maduro regime has manipulated voter lists and disavowed some opposition candidates to run for public office," O Reilly stated. However, none of the over 250 electoral observers present in the country have found irregularities in this process.

Although U.S. authorities supported the Mexico-hosted dialogues between the Venezuelan government and the opposition, they boycotted the process upon accusing the Bolivarian Special Envoy Alex Saab of money laundering and ordering his extradition from Cape Verde. Amidst this situation, Biden maintains the Donald Trump-era harsh economic blockade against Venezuela, a policy that has caused over US$63 billion lost in this Latin American country's economy.

"I wish that the United States realizes that imposing unilateral coercive measures against Venezuela or any other nation is a wrong route that brings it contempt and shame amongst the international community,” President Maduro stated.