Pompeo supports free, fair Venezuelan elections to Lima Group

WASHINGTON, May 15 (KUNA) -- Secretary of State Mike Pompeo participated in a videoconference hosted by Mexico Monday with Lima Group foreign and finance ministers to discuss support for "free and fair" elections in Venezuela.
Pompeo and regional partners affirmed the hemisphere's support for the "Venezuelan people and their right to have a voice in their government through free and fair elections," said a statement State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert.
She added, "He urged his counterparts to hold the (President Nicolas) Maduro regime and its corrupt leaders accountable for their unconstitutional interruption of Venezuela's democratic order by cutting off their access to our financial systems and barring them from our nations." Participants agreed on the need for a regional response to Venezuela's "undemocratic actions," Nauert highlighted.
The discussion included representatives from Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Jamaica, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, and Saint Lucia. Representatives from the European Union and Spain also participated. (end) ak.gta