The government of President of the United States, Donald Trump, attributed the beginning of the release of political prisoners in Venezuela, this Thursday (8), to the strategy of “maximum pressure” adopted by Washington after the capture of dictator Nicolás Maduro in Caracas, during an operation carried out on Saturday (3). The assessment was made by the White House when commenting on the official announcement by the Chavista regime.
According to White House deputy spokeswoman Anna Kelly, the release of the detainees is a direct example of the Trump administration’s use of political and diplomatic pressure.
“This is an example of how the president is using maximum pressure to do what is right for both the American and Venezuelan people,” he said.
The United States’ position came after the president of the Venezuelan Parliament, Chavista Jorge Rodríguez, announced that the regime had decided to release “an important number” of Venezuelan citizens and foreigners imprisoned for political reasons. According to Rodríguez, the measure would be a “unilateral gesture” with the aim of preserving peace and coexistence in the country, and release procedures would have already begun.
Rodríguez did not detail how many people will be released or the timeline for the process. Human rights organizations estimate that Venezuela holds between 800 and 900 political prisoners, the majority detained during the period in which Maduro was in power.