Venezuelan Militia to Become Part of National Bolivarian Armed Forces - Maduro
02:27 14.04.2019
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Venezuela will amend its legislation in order to make the militia a part of the National Bolivarian Armed Forces, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said in his address on Sunday.
"Comandante Chavez has dreamed of a powerful and great militia […] The militia will receive a constitutional rank as a full-fledged part of the country's Armed Forces", Maduro said adding that the legislation would be amended for this move.
Earlier this month, Maduro said that the number of Venezuelan militia officers would be increased from 2.1 million to 3 million by December of 2019.
The decision comes on the heels of a deep political crisis in Venezuela, which has recently entered its third month.
In January, US-backed opposition leader Juan Guaido illegally declared himself interim president of Venezuela after disputing Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's reelection victory in May. Washington immediately endorsed Guaido and called on Maduro to step down.
Constitutionally elected Maduro has accused the United States of trying to orchestrate a coup in order to install Guaido as a US puppet. Russia, China, Cuba, Bolivia, Turkey and a number of other countries have voiced their support for Maduro as the only legitimate president of Venezuela.
US President Donald Trump has hinted that US military intervention in Venezuela was "an option".
© Sputnik
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