Venezuela expels US diplomats in retaliation

Bloomberg

Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro said he’s expelling the top two US diplomats in the country after America imposed sanctions in the wake of a disputed election, saying that the men had meddled in internal politics.
Charge d’Affaires Todd Robinson and Consul General Brian Naranjo were declared persona non grata and must leave Venezuela in 48 hours, Maduro said.
The expulsions, and the arrest of six military officers, came in the wake of Maduro’s re-election to another six-year term on Sunday. The next day, the US prohibited purchases of debts owed to the government, including to the crucial state-run oil company Petroleos de Venezuela SA. The move was meant to draw the financial net tighter around a lifeline industry without punishing a hungry and downtrodden population.
“I condemn all sanctions hurting Venezuela,” Maduro said in a televised address.
“We’ll present proof to the country of the military, economic and political conspiracy from the embassy’s charge d’affaires. Enough of conspiracies. It seems impossible to have respectful relations with the US government.”
Maduro’s order represents a continuation of long frigid relations between a petro-state failing after a two-decade experiment with socialism and one of its largest commercial partners.
While Venezuela sells the US thousands of barrels of Venezuelan crude daily, it has long accused America of trying to undermine the authoritarian regime. Robinson spoke at a news conference in Merida state after the announcement.
“We strongly reject the accusations against myself and my counsel general,” Robinson said.
President Donald Trump’s order this week covers all transactions involving debts owed to the Venezuelan government or state-owned enterprises, including accounts receivable. It also prohibits the sale, transfer or pledging of collateral of any equity interest in which the Venezuelan government has a 50 percent or greater stake.
Among his claims, Maduro said Robinson and Naranjo had pressured opposition candidates not to run in this year’s presidential elections.
Relations have remained icy under Maduro, with the leader regularly blaming both the Obama and Trump administrations for his country’s crushing economic crisis. Maduro expelled the US Embassy’s charge d’affaires and two other top officials, accusing the diplomats of conspiring with the opposition to destabilise the country.