‘Regime change takes time’: Trump plays down stalled coup in Venezuela

Published time: 29 Jun, 2019 10:08

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Supporters of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro protest in Caracas. © Reuters/Carlos Garcia Rawlins

US President Donald Trump has denied that US efforts to oust Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro have lost momentum, telling reporters “things take time” and that he has five alternative strategies for Venezuela.

Speaking at a press conference at the end of the G20 Summit in Osaka on Saturday, Trump was asked about his earlier response to the suggestion that the US had lost momentum in Venezuela, to which he replied it “takes time.” 

“Problem is so many people are leaving Venezuela, it’s, like, going to be a ghost town. It’s a very bad thing that’s happening in Venezuela, nobody has seen anything quite like it, actually,” he told reporters. 

The US supported an attempted ouster of the Maduro government in January when it recognized Juan Guaido as the country’s self-declared interim president. It also supported a Guaido-led “uprising” attempt in April and continues to place sanctions on the country. Despite this, Maduro remains in power and Guaido’s support is declining. 

Asked whether it was time to change strategies, the president said he had “five strategies” that he can switch to “at any moment”.

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“We have a lot things in store if we have to do that,” he said. “We don’t want to do anything, we don’t want to get involved to the extent you may be thinking, but we have a lot of alternatives, we have five different alternatives for Venezuela. We’ll see what happens.” 

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Fox News in May that “military action is possible,” in Venezuela “if that’s what’s required.”

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A June poll by opposition-linked Datincorp found 36 percent of Venezuelans recognize Guaido as their head of state, down from 49 per cent in February, and 41 percent recognize Maduro as president.

Venezuelan authorities said Wednesday they uncovered another attempted assassination plot targeting Maduro and other senior officials.