Colombia hosts conference on Venezuela’s political crisis
April 25, 2023 GMTBOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Diplomats from 20 countries gathered Tuesday in Colombia to discuss the political crisis in Venezuela, where Nicolás Maduro’s socialist administration has strengthened its autocratic rule despite international efforts to expand political freedoms in the South American nation.
Venezuela opposition envoy urges Biden to ease oil sanctions
April 4, 2023 GMTMIAMI (AP) — The new representative of Venezuela's opposition in the U.S. is urging the Biden administration to relax crippling oil sanctions on Nicolas Maduro's government or risk seeing the socialist-run country turn into another Cuba with Washington scapegoated for increasing authoritarianism and economic hardships.
Venezuela’s oil czar resigns amid corruption investigations
March 21, 2023 GMTCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s oil czar announced his resignation Monday as officials investigate alleged corruption among public officials in the state oil industry and other parts of the government.
Presidents of Colombia, Venezuela sign trade deal on border
February 17, 2023 GMTBOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — The presidents of Colombia and Venezuela met on their border Thursday to sign an agreement designed to improve trade between the two countries and lift import duties on dozens of manufactured goods.
US court gives $153 million to Miami man jailed in Venezuela
January 23, 2023 GMTMIAMI (AP) — A federal judge in Miami has awarded $153 million in damages to the family of an exiled Venezuelan lawyer lured back home by his father’s kidnapping only to end up imprisoned for two years on trumped up charges of working as a “financial terrorist” undermining President Nicolás Maduro's rule.
Venezuela orders arrest of exiled lawmakers fighting Maduro
January 9, 2023 GMTCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela's socialist government has ordered the arrest of three exiled former lawmakers at the forefront of renewed efforts to unseat President Nicolas Maduro.
Dinorah Figuera leads an all-female team selected last week by fellow opposition politicians to lead the National Assembly that was voted into office in 2015.
Exiled Venezuela lawmakers chosen to lead anti-Maduro fight
January 9, 2023 GMTCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s opposition has selected an all-female team of mostly unknown exiled former lawmakers to replace the beleaguered Juan Guaidó as the face of its faltering efforts to remove socialist President Nicolas Maduro.
In Venezuela, Maduro-like Christmas toy stirs controversy
December 28, 2022 GMTCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Every year, Venezuela’s socialist government hands out thousands of Christmas presents to the nation’s poorest children, including bicycles, Barbie dolls and plastic trucks imported from China.
US judge rejects Maduro ally’s claim of diplomatic immunity
December 24, 2022 GMTMIAMI (AP) — A federal judge in Miami on Friday rejected attempts by a close ally of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to shield himself from criminal charges, ruling Alex Saab isn't entitled to diplomatic immunity in the U.S.
Venezuela’s bid to save ‘diplomat’ from US charges takes hit
November 8, 2022 GMTMIAMI (AP) — For two years, Venezuela's socialist government has fought to extricate from the U.S. criminal justice system an insider businessman it claims was on an ultra-secret mission to ally Iran when he was arrested on a U.S.
Venezuela, opposition reported preparing to resume talks
November 5, 2022 GMTMEXICO CITY (AP) — The Venezuelan government and the political opposition are preparing to resume talks stalled for more than a year, people familiar with the process told The Associated Press on Friday.
Venezuela insider seeks dismissal of criminal charges
October 18, 2022 GMTMIAMI (AP) — Attorneys for a key ally of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro have filed a new motion seeking to dismiss federal money laundering charges, arguing again that he was illegally detained on U.S.
Biden turning to Trump-era rule to expel Venezuelan migrants
October 16, 2022 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — Two years ago, candidate Joe Biden loudly denounced President Donald Trump for immigration policies that inflicted “cruelty and exclusion at every turn,” including toward those fleeing the "brutal" government of socialist Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela.
Support for Venezuela’s opposition is dwindling at OAS
October 7, 2022 GMTBOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Venezuela’s opposition suffered a rebuff Thursday as 19 members of the Organization of American States backed a proposal to remove its envoy from the regional forum for political and economic issues.
Venezuela rejects UN report detailing torture, rights abuses
September 26, 2022 GMTGENEVA (AP) — Venezuela's government on Monday rejected a report by independent experts working with the United Nations’ top human rights body who alleged President Nicolas Maduro had personally ordered the detention of government opponents, who endured electric shocks, asphyxiation and other cruel acts while in custody.
‘Fat Leonard’ may be Venezuela bargaining chip, experts say
September 23, 2022 GMTSAN DIEGO (AP) — A fugitive defense contractor nicknamed “Fat Leonard” who claims to have incriminating sex photos of U.S. Navy brass could become the latest bargaining chip in Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s efforts to win official recognition from the Biden administration, according to experts.
UN experts: Rights abuses continue in Maduro’s Venezuela
September 20, 2022 GMTCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Independent experts working with the U.N.’s top human rights body say Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro personally ordered the detention of government opponents and critics who ended up suffering electric shocks, beatings, asphyxiation and other cruel acts while in custody.
New claims against ex-Miami congressman hired by Venezuela
August 20, 2022 GMTMIAMI (AP) — A former Miami congressman who signed a $50 million consulting contract with Venezuela's socialist government not only did no apparent work, but also channeled a large chunk of the money to a yacht company on behalf of a fugitive billionaire, according to new allegations in a civil suit.
Venezuela, Colombia border areas hopeful as reopening looms
August 7, 2022 GMTSAN JUAN DE COLON, Venezuela (AP) — The freight company owned by Alfredo Rosales and his brothers was hustling, its 50 or so trucks constantly on the go hauling about 1 million tons of coal, cement, flour and other goods every year in commerce between Venezuela and Colombia.
Venezuela’s Maduro meets Qatar’s ruling emir on Mideast trip
June 15, 2022 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro met with Qatar's ruling emir on Wednesday as part of a Mideast tour.
Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani posted a photo on social media of the two meeting, saying they “discussed prospects for enhancing cooperation between our two countries in various fields for the good and interest of our two friendly peoples.”
Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro visits Qatar on Mideast tour
June 14, 2022 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro traveled Tuesday to the energy-rich nation of Qatar as part of a Mideast tour.
Maduro was met at Doha International Airport by Qatar's minister of state for foreign affairs, Sultan bin Saad al-Muraikhi, and others, according to the state-run Qatar News Agency.
Venezuelan opposition to file complaint for attack on leader
June 14, 2022 GMTCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The Venezuelan opposition group backed by the United States will file a complaint with the Inter-American Court of Human Rights for the physical attack its leader suffered over the weekend during a visit to a rural community as part of a tour meant to unite his party and allies.
Venezuela’s Maduro visits Kuwait, speaks to crown prince
June 14, 2022 GMTDUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro visited Kuwait on Monday and spoke to the small, oil-rich nation's crown prince, state media reported.
“We are on this necessary tour to reactivate ties of work, cooperation, commonality, solidarity, brotherhood,” Maduro said from Kuwait in a televised conversation with his collaborators in Caracas.
Venezuelan leader, Iranian president sign 20-year agreement
June 11, 2022 GMTTEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and Iran's hard-line president signed a 20-year cooperation agreement Saturday, a day after Maduro praised the Islamic Republic for sending badly needed fuel to his nation despite U.S.
Venezuela’s Maduro in Iran for political and economic talks
June 10, 2022 GMTTEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro arrived Friday in the Iranian capital of Tehran on a two-day state visit, the country's state-run media reported.
A high-ranking political and economic delegation from Venezuela, which like Iran is under heavy U.S.
Venezuela’s Maduro received with pomp on Algeria visit
June 9, 2022 GMTALGIERS, Algeria (AP) — Algeria’s president met on Thursday with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who was welcomed with pomp as he visited the North African nation.
Maduro arrived Wednesday evening, greeted at the Algiers airport by Algeria’s prime minister, as he began what Algeria's state APS news agency called a two-day “working and friendship visit."
Venezuelan leader, barred from US summit, arrives in Turkey
June 8, 2022 GMTISTANBUL (AP) — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was welcomed in the Turkish capital on Wednesday just as the foreign minister of Russia, a key ally of the ostracized Latin American regime, was also visiting the city.
Light sentences in 2 US cases targeting graft in Venezuela
May 23, 2022 GMTMIAMI (AP) — Two U.S. criminal cases targeting Venezuela’s government ended Monday in a four-year prison sentence for a Miami businessman who serviced the country’s Russian fighter jets and a light sentence for another individual who implicated a fierce opponent of President Nicolas Maduro in corrupt dealings.
Appeals court thwarts Maduro ally’s claim of diplomat status
May 2, 2022 GMTMIAMI (AP) — A federal appeals panel has thwarted an ally of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's attempts to be recognized as a foreign diplomat, leaving it to a lower court to decide for now whether he is immune from prosecution.
Ex Green Beret claims Maduro foe is avoiding Miami lawsuit
March 28, 2022 GMTMIAMI (AP) — A Venezuelan political strategist allegedly threatened to shoot a gun through the door of his luxury Miami condo to avoid being served a lawsuit by a former U.S. Green Beret he hired as part of a plan to oust President Nicolas Maduro, according to a court hearing Monday.
Pressure builds on Biden to repay Venezuela’s goodwill moves
March 10, 2022 GMTMIAMI (AP) — Pressure is building on the Biden administration to begin unwinding sanctions on Venezuela after President Nicolas Maduro freed two American prisoners and promised to resume negotiations with his opponents.
Possible Russia oil embargo drives US outreach to Venezuela
March 7, 2022 GMTMIAMI (AP) — Senior U.S. officials secretly traveled to Venezuela over the weekend in a bid to unfreeze hostile relations with Vladimir Putin’s top ally in Latin America, a top oil exporter whose re-entry into U.S.
Families of American captives frustrated with Justice Dept.
February 18, 2022 GMTWASHINGTON (AP) — When relatives of American oil executives jailed in Venezuela met virtually with a senior Justice Department official this month, it didn't take long for their frustrations to surface.
Venezuela’s Guaidó, opposition seek to unite under big tent
February 11, 2022 GMTCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The Venezuelan opposition was reenergized recently by an unexpected gubernatorial victory in the home state of the late President Hugo Chavez. Now it is trying to use that momentum to bring its divided factions together and launch yet another attempt to topple his political heirs.
Italy top court: Venezuela’s ex-oil czar can’t be extradited
January 28, 2022 GMTROME (AP) — Italy’s highest court confirmed Friday that Venezuela's former oil czar cannot be extradited to face corruption charges at home because of his country's record in violating human rights, his Italian lawyer said.
Miami prosecutors partly dismiss charges against Maduro ally
November 1, 2021 GMTMIAMI (AP) — Federal prosecutors in Miami have dismissed several criminal charges against an ally of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro due to assurances they made to Cape Verde over a year ago as part of a rancorous extradition fight.
Rome court rejects Venezuela extradition bid for ex-oil czar
September 20, 2021 GMTROME (AP) — A Rome court has rejected a request by Venezuela to extradite its former oil czar to face corruption charges, citing the country’s record in violating human rights, his Italian lawyer said Monday.
UN experts: Venezuelan judiciary has big role in repression
September 16, 2021 GMTGENEVA (AP) — Experts working with the U.N.’s top human rights body say Venezuela’s judicial system has played a “significant role” in state repression in the country, citing widespread allegations of rights violations.
Venezuela names US fugitive to team negotiating with foes
September 15, 2021 GMTMIAMI (AP) — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is seeking to add to a new member to his team negotiating in Mexico with his political opponents — an ally jailed in Cape Verde awaiting extradition to the U.S.
US eases crippling Venezuela sanction, allows propane deals
July 13, 2021 GMTCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The U.S. government on Monday moved to ease a crippling sanction imposed by the Trump administration on Venezuela by allowing companies to export propane to the troubled South American country, a step that could mitigate a shortage that has pushed people to cook on charcoal or wood grills.
UN agency begins to distribute food rations in Venezuela
July 7, 2021 GMTCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The families of Venezuelan school children living in poverty this week began receiving food rations from a United Nations agency.
The parents or guardians of children under the age of 6 in the northwest Venezuelan state of Falcon received a monthly ration for each child of 13.2 pounds (6 kilograms) of rice, 8.8 pounds (4 kilograms) of lentils, a pound (450 grams) of iodized salt and 33.8 ounces (1 liter) of vegetable oil.
Report: Venezuela security forces continue killings, torture
July 5, 2021 GMTCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan security forces carried out fewer extra-judicial killings in the 12 months through April, a U.N. report said Monday, but it accuses them of a continued pattern of torture or cruel treatment of individuals as well as enforced disappearances and incommunicado detentions.
Venezuelan tycoon sues US to lift narcotics sanctions
June 30, 2021 GMTMIAMI (AP) — A top Venezuelan businessman close to President Nicolas Maduro's government has sued the U.S. Department of Treasury, alleging he's the victim of a false campaign identifying him as a international narcotics kingpin.
US weighs policy on Venezuela as Maduro signals flexibility
April 27, 2021 GMTMIAMI (AP) — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s government is intensifying efforts to court the Biden administration as the new U...
Venezuela prosecutor who defied Maduro implicated in bribery
April 23, 2021 GMTMIAMI (AP) — A former Venezuelan attorney general who defied President Nicolas Maduro by siding with his opponents has been implicated in a major corruption case involving a Venezuelan businessman who this week pleaded guilty to paying $1 million in bribes, two people familiar with the case said Thursday...
Miami judge rejects Maduro ally’s request to dismiss charges
March 18, 2021 GMTMIAMI (AP) — A federal judge in Miami on Thursday rejected a request by a prominent ally of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to dismiss money laundering charges, ruling that he must first surrender to U...
Pilot who helped Maduro allies evade US sanctions sentenced
March 17, 2021 GMTMIAMI (AP) — A Miami-based pilot who arranged chartered flights to Russia and elsewhere for top allies of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has been sentenced to more than four years in prison...
UN human rights body opens session as Myanmar concerns loom
February 22, 2021 GMTGENEVA (AP) — The U.N.’s top human rights body has opened its first and highest-level meeting of 2021, amid growing concerns on issues including the military coup in Myanmar, the arrest of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny and the rights situations in countries including Ethiopia and Sri Lanka...
Brazil receives oxygen from Venezuela for COVID-19 patients
January 20, 2021 GMTSAO PAULO (AP) — Five trucks carrying oxygen from Venezuela arrived at Manaus, a city of 2 million people in the Brazilian rainforest where the local health system has collapsed amid a devastating second wave of COVID-19 and a severe shortage of oxygen for breathless patients...
Venezuela’s socialists take control of once-defiant congress
January 5, 2021 GMTCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Parading giant portraits of Hugo Chavez and independence hero Simon Bolivar, allies of President Nicolas Maduro retook control of Venezuela's congress Tuesday, the last institution in the country it didn’t already control...
US has 1st ambassador in decade to Venezuela amid tensions
November 19, 2020 GMTCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Washington has its first ambassador for Venezuela in a decade despite the U.S. having no diplomats at its Caracas embassy amid a breakdown in relations.
James Story's nomination as ambassador was confirmed Wednesday by a U...
Maduro foe joins family in Spain after fleeing Venezuela
October 25, 2020 GMTMEDELLIN, Colombia (AP) — After more than six years in confinement, Venezuela’n opposition leader Leopoldo López is a free man and has been reunited with his family in Madrid...
Experts cite ‘crimes against humanity’ in Maduro’s Venezuela
September 16, 2020 GMTGENEVA (AP) — Independent experts for the U.N.’s top human rights body accused the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Wednesday of crimes against humanity, highlighting grisly cases of torture and killings allegedly carried out by security forces who used techniques like electric shocks, genital mutilation and asphyxiation...
VIRUS DIARY: Staving off the virus while our water runs out
May 5, 2020 GMTHARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — I know we're meant to be washing our hands frequently. We're trying. But we're running out of water again and I don't know when the water truck is going to be back...
Ex-Green Beret led failed attempt to oust Venezuela’s Maduro
May 2, 2020 GMTMIAMI (AP) — The plan was simple but perilous. Some 300 heavily armed volunteers planned to sneak into Venezuela from the northern tip of South America and ignite a popular rebellion that would end in President Nicolas Maduro’s arrest...
Some people turn to herbal medicine for virus without proof
April 17, 2020 GMTNEW DELHI (AP) — With no approved drugs for the new coronavirus, some people are turning to alternative medicines, often with governments promoting them...
AP Sources: Shipping tycoon helps Venezuela in quest for gas
April 3, 2020 GMTCARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — With gas lines across Venezuela growing, a controversial shipping magnate has stepped in to prevent the country from running out of fuel amid the coronavirus pandemic, The Associated Press has learned...
US outlines plan for Venezuela transition, sanctions relief
March 31, 2020 GMTMIAMI (AP) — The Trump administration is prepared to lift crippling sanctions on Venezuela in support of a new proposal to form a transitional government requiring both Nicolas Maduro and opposition leader Juan Guaidó to step aside in favor of a five-person governing council, U...