Venezuelan crisis defection

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Defections from the Bolivarian Revolution occurred under the administrations of Presidents Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro. The 2019 Venezuelan presidential crisis concerning who is the legitimate President of Venezuela has been underway since 10 January 2019, when the opposition-majority National Assembly declared that incumbent Nicolás Maduro's 2018 reelection was invalid and the body declared its president, Juan Guaidó, to be acting president of the nation. Guaidó encouraged military personnel and security officials to withdraw support from Maduro,[1] and offered an amnesty law, approved by the National Assembly, for military personnel and authorities who help to restore constitutional order.[2]

Maduro's government states that the crisis is a "coup d'état led by the United States to topple him and control the country's oil reserves."[3][4] Guaidó denies the coup allegations, saying peaceful volunteers back his movement.[5] As of March 2019, Guaidó has been recognized as the interim president of Venezuela by 54 countries,[6] "including the US and most Latin American and European countries".[7]

Several top military figures recognized Guaidó, and hundreds of military personnel have defected to Colombia, but top military command has not broken ranks with Maduro as of mid-April 2019.[8] Following the 23 January events, some Venezuelan diplomats in the United States supported Guaidó; the majority returned to Venezuela on Maduro's orders.[9]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference NPRFled was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Juan Guaidó ofreció detalles sobre Ley de Amnistía". El Nacional (in Spanish). 25 January 2019. Retrieved 28 January 2019.
  3. ^ "Canciller Arreaza advierte que objetivo de plan golpista es el petróleo venezolano" (in Spanish). presidencia.gob.ve. Archived from the original on 31 January 2019. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  4. ^ "Maduro afirma que el petróleo es el principal motivo de la presión de EEUU contra Venezuela" (in Spanish). Europa Press. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  5. ^ Borges, Anelise (18 February 2019). "'I'm ready to die for my country's future,' Juan Guaido tells Euronews". Euronews. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  6. ^ DeYoung Karen (4 April 2019). "Diseases surge in Venezuela under health system in 'utter collapse', report says". The Independent. Retrieved 5 April 2019.
  7. ^ Meredith, Sam (12 February 2019). "How a nationwide protest against Maduro could shape Venezuela's future". CNBC. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  8. ^ Buitrago, Deisy and Mariela Nava (13 April 2019). "Venezuela's Maduro orders militia expansion as Guaido tours blackout-ravaged state". Reuters. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference :23 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).