MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Pompeo pays tribute to Peru for receiving 700.000 Venezuela refugees

“Peru has felt firsthand the effects of the disastrous Nicolas Maduro and the pain that he has brought to the Venezuelan people,” Pompeo said in Lima

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo ended a visit to Peru on Sunday and travelled to the Colombian border city of Cucuta, crossed through by thousands of Venezuelans fleeing crisis under President Nicolas Maduro.

After attending a Sunday service in the Peruvian capital Lima, the chief US diplomat set off shortly after noon for the final leg of his tour of South America, which began on Friday in Chile.

“Peru has felt firsthand the effects of the disastrous Nicolas Maduro and the pain that he has brought to the Venezuelan people,” he had said on Saturday, following talks with President Martin Vizcarra and Foreign Minister Nestor Popolizio.

Pompeo said that Peru had shown “enormous leadership in responding to this challenge.” He also mentioned that the US had contributed with US$ 31 million to help Peru address with the inflow.

Over three million Venezuelans, around 10% of the population, now live outside the crisis-hit country. UN predicts that number will hit 5.3 million by the end of 2019.

Peru has received the most Venezuelans after Colombia: 750,000, according to Popolizio, testing the capacity of the country's public services.

On Saturday, Pompeo paid tribute to Peru's welcome for hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan refugees. But he became irritated when a reporter asked if that contradicted US President Donald Trump's harsh immigration policy at home.