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Venezuela-Russian Meeting to Be Held in April, 20 Accords to Be Signed - Maduro

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said that a high-profile Venezuela-Russia intergovernmental meeting will be held this April, adding that the sides plan to sign nearly 20 agreements in the spheres of the economy, energy, trade and education.
Sputnik

"A high-level working session on intergovernmental cooperation between Russia and Venezuela will be held in April. We will sign more than 20 documents on cooperation in the field of economy, trade, energy and education", Maduro said in an interview broadcast by Channel One Russia on Tuesday.

Maduro added that Caracas awaits another delivery of humanitarian aid from Moscow.

On 22 February, Caracas received around 7.5 tonnes of humanitarian cargo from Russia, including medicines, medical equipment and consumables, under programs of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organization.

READ MORE: US, Brazil Not Mulling Use of Military Force in Venezuela — Reports

Earlier in March, Venezuela suffered its worst power outage in history, when as many as 20 states were left without electricity. Venezuela's national electricity supplier, Corpoelec, said that the incident was caused by an act of "sabotage" at the Guri hydroelectric power plant, which generates electricity for nearly all of the country. Caracas has accused Washington of being behind the alleged attack on the power plant. The United States has, in turn, refuted the accusations.

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Last week, US President Donald Trump said he would discuss the possibility of a military intervention in Venezuela with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro during his visit to the United States, adding that all options remain on the table. However, US Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan said in a congressional hearing on Tuesday that Washington does not intend to solve the Venezuelan crisis militarily.

Venezuela has been suffering from a severe political crisis since January, when the leader of the country's opposition, Juan Guaido, illegally proclaimed himself interim president, contesting the re-election of Maduro last year.

READ MORE: Russian Military Officials Arrive in Venezuela for Defence Talks — Source

The self-proclaimed interim president immediately received support on the part of the United States, which has also denounced Maduro's re-election, along with several other countries. China, Cuba, Russia and a number of other countries have endorsed the constitutionally elected Maduro as Venezuela's only legitimate president.

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