President Donald Trump said on Sunday that sending U.S. troops to Venezuela is 'an option' but he ruled out a meeting with socialist leader Nicolas Maduro.
In an interview with CBS News, Trump reiterated that military intervention was a possibility.
'Certainly, it's something that's on the - it's an option,' Trump said, adding that Maduro requested a meeting months ago.
'I've turned it down because we're very far along in the process,' he said in a CBS 'Face the Nation' interview. 'So, I think the process is playing out - very, very big tremendous protests.'
President Donald Trump said sending U.S. troops to Venezuela is 'an option'
Opposition leader Juan Guaido declared himself Venezuela's legitimate ruler on January 23
Nicolas Maduro (R) waves next to his wife Cilia Flores during a gathering to mark the 20th anniversary of the rise of power of the late Hugo Chavez
His comments come as Western nations are piling pressure on Maduro to hand over power to opposition leader and self-proclaimed President Juan Guaido.
The United States, Canada and several Latin American countries have disavowed Maduro over his disputed re-election last year and recognize Guaido as the rightful leader of the economically troubled OPEC nation.
Maduro however still maintains the powerful backing of Russia, China and Turkey, whose foreign minister said on Sunday that Western meddling was fueling Venezuela's troubles and punishing millions of its people.
Trump spoke with Guaido on Thursday to 'congratulate him on his historic assumption of the presidency,' according to a White House statement.
Tens of thousands of people thronged the streets of various Venezuelan cities on Saturday to protest Maduro's government and a senior air force general recognized interim-chief Guaido.
France and Austria said on Sunday they would recognize Guaido if Maduro did not respond to the European Union's call for a free and fair presidential election by Sunday night.
The Trump administration last week issued crippling sanctions that are likely to further weaken the country's struggling oil industry.
While that could weaken Maduro, it risks also exacerbating Venezuela's economic collapse. Venezuela is suffering medicine shortages, malnutrition and hyperinflation that has prompted millions to emigrate in recent years.
Venezuela's ambassador to Iraq, Jonathan Velasco, became the latest of a handful of officials to defect from Maduro's government this weekend in a video published on social media on Saturday.
Guaido told his supporters in a major rally in Caracas on Saturday that he would on Sunday announce when they would seek to bring in international humanitarian aid from Colombia, Brazil and a Caribbean island.
It is unclear whether Maduro's government, which denies the country is suffering a humanitarian crisis, will let any foreign aid through.
Last week Maduro accused the United States of orchestrating a coup, and appealed to American citizens on social media early Wednesday morning to stop its government from interfering in the affairs of Latin America.
'People of the # USA , I ask for your support to reject the interference of the Donald Trump government that intends to make of My Homeland a Vietnam in Latin America. Do not Let Him!' Maduro tweeted.
Guaido battles through a crowd of supporters as he arrives to address the masses on Saturday afternoon in central Caracas
Major European countries have set a Sunday deadline for Maduro to call snap presidential elections
Supporters of President Nicolas Maduro hold up a banner with a picture of U.S. President Donald Trump and a message that reads in Spanish: 'Get out the White House Donald Trump, you and your wall'
He shared a direct to camera video on Twitter and Facebook, in Spanish, alongside the message in which he made a similar plea.
Maduro also claimed that Trump ordered the Colombian government and mafia to assassinate him, after a mystery Russian jet landed in Venezuela this week 'to ship out gold from the central bank.'
He said that he has no doubt that the U.S. President 'gave the order to Colombia to kill me' and that if something happens to him 'Donald Trump will be responsible.'
The Trump administration has been ratcheting up pressure on Maduro, granting Guaido the ability to access the regime's frozen U.S. bank accounts and issuing new sanctions intended to dry up Maduro's remaining funds.
On Monday the U.S. Treasury Department slapped sanctions on Venezuela's state-owned oil companies and set in place a system to freeze accounts that also could be placed under Guaido's control.
Maduro has struck back at the U.S. action.
'Do you think you are the emperor of the world?' he asked Trump. 'Do you think Venezuela is going to give up and obey your orders? We will not surrender,' he said.
On Saturday, Maduro said he was willing to sit down for talks with the opposition in an effort to promote national 'harmony.'
But that offer has been rejected by Guaido, who describes it as a ploy by the Maduro administration to buy time.
Previous talks between the government and opposition have failed to change electoral conditions in the South American country, and many political leaders have been forced into exile.
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News Photo Sending U.S. troops to Venezuela is 'an option,' Trump says
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