The United States denied today that it is conspiring against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who is expected to take office tomorrow, Agence France-Presse reported, quoted by BTA.
"Any allegations that the United States is involved in a plot to overthrow Maduro are categorically false", a US State Department spokesman said. The spokesman made the statement after Venezuelan authorities said they had arrested two American "mercenaries," one of whom is a "senior FBI official and the other a senior military officer." The United States is "concerned by reports of American citizens being detained in Venezuela," the spokesman said. Venezuelan authorities have deployed a large number of law enforcement officers in the country, mainly in the capital, Caracas, promising that Maduro's inauguration will be peaceful and orderly, they said. Maduro will take office days before US President-elect Donald Trump, whose nominee for Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, is a vocal opponent of Maduro.