The U.S. Embassy building in Caracas is seen Thursday, a day after Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro broke off diplomatic ties with the U.S. Maduro announced on Wednesday he was breaking off diplomatic ties with the United States after counterpart Donald Trump acknowledged opposition leader Juan Guaido as the South American country's "interim president." | AFP-JIJI
At least ten vans, which were monitored by police officers, left the embassy.
The US embassy in Venezuela evacuated part of its staff, two days after that President Nicolás Maduro announced the breakdown of diplomatic and political relations with Washington and gave them 72 hours to leave the country and ending this Sunday.
A convoy of at least a dozen black and white trucks left from a sector near the US embassy, in a caravan, whose passage was protected by police officers, according to a Reuters witness.
#URGENTE 10:00 AM- Personal no esencial y familiares de trabajadores de la Embajada de Estados Unidos @usembassyve abandonan dicha embajada en camionetas diplomáticas escoltadas por la PNB #25Ene
Atentos a próximas informaciones pic.twitter.com/pwQ9WFxxcl
— Luis Gonzalo Pérez (@luisgonzaloprz) January 25, 2019
Relations between Caracas and Washington, main Venezuelan oil buyer, tensed even more this week when Maduro denounced that President Donald Trump favored a coup d’etat against his government after recognizing the leader of the National Assembly, Juan Guaidó, as Interin president of the country and announced the rupture of diplomatic relation.
In a press conference that is being held at this moment by President Maduro with foreign correspondents, he reiterated that he expects some sanity in the US Department of State and leave the country in the timing define by international agreements.
In another development it was confirmed that Guaido offered Venezuelan diplomats in the US -making preparations to leave that country this Saturday- to stay and keep working for his parallel government.
Ayer dejé un mensaje a los Funcionarios de Consulados de Venezuela en EEUU: Tienen en sus manos la decisión de quedarse y ser reconocidos por el pueblo y por quien les escribe.
Y ya hoy hablé con una funcionaría venezolana en Houston y me dijo:”a la orden presidente yo me quedo” pic.twitter.com/TNxSe87pPA
— Juan Guaidó (@jguaido) January 25, 2019
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