Pompeo: U.S. ‘Fully Supports Venezuelan People’ in Uprising Against Maduro

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday morning expressed full U.S. support for the military’s rejection of socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro apparently underway in Venezuela, as internationally-recognized interim President Juan Guaidó called on military units to abandon Maduro and demonstrators filled the streets.

Pompeo supported Guaidó on Tuesday morning via Twitter:

Today interim President Juan Guaido announced start of Operación Libertad. The U.S. Government fully supports the Venezuelan people in their quest for freedom and democracy. Democracy cannot be defeated. #EstamosUnidosVE

— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) April 30, 2019

Pompeo discussed Venezuela during an interview with The Hill on Monday, saying the morale of the Maduro regime was cracking and the dictator’s inner circle was looking for an exit strategy.

“We see leaders inside of Maduro’s inner circle now trying to figure out what the golden ticket looks like. ‘What does it look like if I leave?’ When they start asking those questions, surely some of them will decide there are better times ahead not supporting that thug,” he said.

Pompeo said the U.S. has been working to peel away Maduro’s support from China, Cuba, Iran, and Russia.

“You’ve seen the efforts we’ve made to try and convince the Cubans, who have hundreds of intelligence officers, thousands of people working with the Maduro regime, to convince them that’s not the right foreign policy, that Maduro is going to leave. And when [he] leaves, they’re going to be in a far better place if they choose a better path. We are making the same case to all the parties that are supporting Maduro,” he said.