The Dominican Republic cast its vote to back the interim president of Venezuela, Juan Guaidó Marquez as the official representative of Venezuela before the Organization of American States (OAS). During an extraordinary session of the OAS, 16 of the 24 members voted to reject the legitimacy of the second term of Nicolas Maduro based on what has been described as sham election in May of 2018.
Together with the Dominican Republic, countries such as the United States, Colombia, Brazil, Chile, Bahamas, Honduras, Guatemala, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Costa Rica, Canada and Haiti voted to recognize Guaidó as the legitimate leader amid the chaos in Venezuela. These nations called upon the Armed Forces of Venezuela to guarantee the safety of Guaidó Marquez and the other members of the National Assembly, where the majority has opposed the Maduro government. The OAS also called upon its members as well as the Venezuelan Armed Forces to safeguard all of the diplomatic missions in Venezuela.
Meanwhile, the United Nations is divided on what position to take. Two permanent members of the United Nations Security Council continue to back Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela.
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Diario Libre
28 January 2019
