Venezuela’s national assembly president Jorge Rodriguez condemned former US national security adviser John Bolton after his recent admission that he had helped plan coups in other countries.
Mr Rodriguez branded the former US government official “crazy” and said that “Venezuela will never surrender” after the candid remarks made by Mr Bolton in an interview with CNN earlier this week.
He told the US broadcaster: “As somebody who has helped plan coup d’etats, not here, but, you know, other places, it takes a lot of work” and hinted at involvement in a plot to overthrow Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Mr Bolton said that he would not “go into the specifics” but said that “it turned out not to be successful.”
Mr Rodriguez described the confession as “an extraordinary feat of brazenness.
“What was in the mind of this crazy John Bolton was that the violence would accelerate so that they could have an excuse for the invasion … a military invasion in Venezuela,” he said, calling the former Trump aide a “psychopath.”
“We can never tire of thanking the dignified people and Venezuelan Armed Forces that repelled the most serious attack the republic has suffered in 150 years,” he said.
Former Venezuelan Cabinet minister Diosdado Cabello called Mr Bolton “an inept who, for all the money [former US President] Donald Trump gave him, could not perform the order he received.”
Venezuela has been subjected to a number of attempted coups intended to oust Mr Maduro and replace him with Washington-backed embarrassment Juan Guaido.
This included an attempted insurrection launched from neighbouring Colombia by the US Silvercorps private security company, spearheaded by two former marines, Luke Denman and Airan Berry.
They were jailed for their role in the plot which included plans to kidnap or kill Mr Maduro.
The Bolivarian leader insisted that the coup was plotted in the White House, describing Mr Trump as “the chief.”
This article originally appeared in The Morning Star