Guaido’s visit was first reported by Bloomberg journalist Jennifer Jacobs and then confirmed to Axios by a White House official. He’s expected to sit in first lady Melania Trump’s box, according to Bloomberg.
Scoop: Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido will attend tonight’s State of the Union address as a guest of the White House, providing a high-profile platform for him as he seeks to revive support for his bid to oust President Nicolás Maduro.
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) February 4, 2020
Guaido had illegally declared himself interim president of Venezuela almost a year ago, sparking a political crisis in the country. Nearly 60 countries, including the US, have recognized Guaido, while Russia, China, Turkey and many other countries have said they recognize constitutionally-elected President Nicolas Maduro as the only legitimate head of state in Venezuela. Following the unsuccessful attempt at an uprising, Guaido has been visiting world leaders in Europe and Canada in hopes of rallying new momentum for his movement, lately appearing at the World Economic Forum at Davos in January.
Venezuela’s opposition leader also met Senator Marco Rubio last weekend in Miami. At a rally, Guaido claimed that he had a strategy and “the support of the world,” cited by Bloomberg.
Maduro has described American support for Guaido as a failure, calling for direct dialogue with the US in an interview with the Washington Post last month, suggesting that there could be certain economic benefits for US oil companies if Trump were to lift the sanctions against Venezuela. Maduro has also previously slammed Guaido, saying that the latter acted on the orders of the United States, which sought to install him as the country’s president and gain control of Venezuela’s massive oil assets.
