By: Staff Writer
January 24, 2025
The political turmoil in Venezuela has now gone international as the Nicolas Maduri regime has castigated several European countries claiming that they are being hostile against his presidency.
Venezuela on Tuesday announced restrictions on French, Italian and Dutch diplomats on its soil, citing their governments’ “hostile” response to Nicolás Maduro’s presidential inauguration, widely rejected as a power grab.
In a move branded an “escalation” by the Dutch government, the foreign ministry announced it would limit the number of accredited diplomats to three for each of the countries.
Those remaining would also need “written authorization… to travel more than 40 kilometers from Plaza Bolivar” in the capital Caracas.
Meanwhile, the standoff between caracas and Washington continues as Venezuela is waiting for migrants to return home after appointments to enter the US were cancelled under the new Trump administration, President Maduro said on Tuesday.
His comments come after Washington and the US Customs and Border Protection announced on Monday that the CBP One app would no longer be used to admit migrants into the country.
The “maximum pressure” strategy employed from 2018 to 2022 against the illegitimate Nicolás Maduro regime in Venezuela did not serve US interests. Stringent oil sanctions imposed on Venezuela forced the retreat of Western oil firms from the country, principally benefitting adversaries. During the maximum pressure campaign, Venezuela’s oil production was rerouted to China at discounted prices, Iran supplied the diluent Venezuela required for oil production, and Russian investors became more critical amid a dearth on Western investment.
A democratic transition remained elusive while repression and human rights violations continued. Venezuelans suffered, US adversaries expanded their influence, and Maduro remained.
Meanwhile, Maduro’s opposition, remains on the outside as they have been forced from the country and have met with the outgoing US Biden administration, but have not formally met with the Donald Trump team.