VATICAN CITY: Pope Leo received Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado at the Vatican on Monday. There were no details about the audience, with the Vatican publishing Machado's name in a list of people received by the US pope on Monday morning. Machado, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in December, has been sidelined by Washington in the wake of the US intervention in Venezuela that toppled President Nicolas Maduro.
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday he would meet Machado this week after previously saying she did not have the respect or support within Venezuela to lead. Leo, 70, called for Venezuela's sovereignty to be protected in a speech to diplomats. The pope issued an appeal "to respect the will of the Venezuelan people, and to safeguard the human and civil rights of all" following the suggestion by US President Donald Trump that the US could control the South American country for years. The Vatican's chief diplomat Pietro Parolin spoke with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio last week. The two discussed "efforts to improve the humanitarian situation, particularly in Venezuela," the US Department of State said. — AFP
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