Venezuela

• Monday, June 1st 2015 - 07:32 UTC

  Cabello denies cocaine trafficking and will file complaints against media reports in Spain and US

  

  Venezuelan parliament chief Diosdado Cabello said in an interview on Sunday that he plans to file lawsuits in Spain and the United States following media reports that link him and other top officials to cocaine trafficking and money laundering.

• Monday, May 25th 2015 - 07:25 UTC

  Jailed Venezuelan opposition leaders declare themselves on hunger strike

  

  Jailed opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez has declared himself on hunger strike and called for a protest march next weekend against Venezuela's populist government. Lopez, the best-known opposition activist in custody, was jailed more than a year ago for his role in instigating street protests against President Nicolas Maduro that led to violence killing 43 people and injuring hundreds more.

• Thursday, May 21st 2015 - 06:45 UTC

  Venezuelan government targets opposition leader Capriles for making “false allegations”

  

  Barely one week after Venezuela’s President of the National Assembly of Venezuela Diosdado Cabello filed a defamation suit against 22 media executives and editors for publishing reports linking him to an international drug-trafficking, another high-level minister announced they would be filing suit against opposition leader Henrique Capriles for making “false allegations.”

• Wednesday, May 20th 2015 - 04:42 UTC

  US targets Venezuela's second strongest man for alleged cocaine trafficking

  

  Despite persistent denials of any wrongdoing from Caracas, US authorities are currently investigating Venezuela’s powerful parliamentary chief, Diosdado Cabello, and other senior officials over alleged cocaine-trafficking and money-laundering, the Wall Street Journal reported.

• Friday, May 15th 2015 - 04:41 UTC

  Exxon discovers oil off Guyana coast, in territory claimed by Venezuela

  

  Exxon Mobil Corp has discovered oil off the coast of Guyana, the company and the South American nation's government said on Thursday, potentially inflaming a long-running territorial dispute with neighboring Venezuela.

• Monday, May 11th 2015 - 09:05 UTC

  Under pressure from Brazil, Venezuela announces legislative elections for end of the year

  

  Venezuela will hold parliamentary elections in the last quarter of this year and the exact date will be announced soon, the head of the National Electoral Council (CNE) said on Sunday. The elected lawmakers will be inaugurated for five years on 2016.

• Wednesday, April 29th 2015 - 09:14 UTC

  Oil rich but power short Venezuela cuts working day to save electricity

  

  Venezuela says it will cut the working day for public sector workers to five-and-a-half hours to conserve energy, down from eight to nine hours. The initiative is part of a nationwide electricity rationing plan.

• Monday, April 20th 2015 - 23:59 UTC

  China makes effective 5bn dollars loan to Venezuela for 'development plans'

  

  China has awarded Venezuela 5 billion dollars for unspecified “development plans,” President Nicolas Maduro said on Sunday, approximately three months after an official visit to China. According to published reports, the loan is part of a 10 billion deal to be completed in the following months.

• Friday, April 10th 2015 - 07:14 UTC

  Cuba and US hold historic meeting at highest level in Panama

  

  US Secretary of State John Kerry and Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez have held talks, in the highest level meeting between the two countries in more than half a century. The two were involved in closed-door discussions after arriving in Panama for a summit.

• Friday, March 20th 2015 - 08:23 UTC

  Venezuela condemns US 'tyrannical” attempts in New York Times full page ad

  

  Venezuela has placed a full page ad in The New York Times decrying what it charges are “tyrannical” attempts by the US government to undermine its socialist system. The ad declaring that “Venezuela is not a threat” comes amid mounting tensions between the two countries after President Nicolás Maduro this month accused Washington of plotting to oust him and ordered the US Embassy in Caracas to slash staffing levels.