CARACAS, Venezuela: The number of Venezuelans who have left their country in recent years has surpassed 4 million, the United Nations said Friday ahead of a visit to the region by UNHCR envoy Angelina Jolie.
The UN refugee agency said the number of Venezuelan refugees and migrants rose by 1 million after November, indicating a rapid escalation as economic conditions deteriorated and a conflict between the government of President Nicolás Maduro and the opposition intensified.
“These alarming figures highlight the urgent need to support host communities in the receiving countries,” said Eduardo Stein, the UN’s Joint Special Representative for Venezuelan refugees and migrants, in a statement. “Latin American and Caribbean countries are doing their part to respond to this unprecedented crisis but they cannot be expected to continue doing it without international help.”
The exodus comes amid a grinding political standoff between Maduro and opposition leader Juan Guaidó.
Guaidó, who heads the opposition-controlled congress, revived a flagging movement in January by declaring himself interim president, quickly drawing recognition as Venezuela’s rightful leader from the US and more than 50 nations.
But Maduro, with the support of the military and allies Cuba and Russia, has defiantly held on to power in the face of US oil sanctions that are adding to misery in a nation hit hard by hyperinflation and widespread fuel, food and power shortages.
A record number of Venezuelans have fled the country’s crisis, with Latin American countries hosting most of them.
More than 1.3 million Venezuelans are in Colombia, followed by 768,000 in Peru and large numbers of migrants in Chile, Ecuardor, Brazil and Argentina, UNHCR said. Mexico and countries in Central America and the Caribbean are also hosting significant numbers of refugees and migrants.
On Friday, Jolie planned to start a two-day trip to the Colombian border with Venezuela to assess the migrant crisis caused by the country’s tumult. She is scheduled to visit a border camp where Venezuelan migrants are staying in tents and hold a news conference in the Colombian region of La Guajira on Saturday.
Jolie last visited the region in October, when she met Venezuelan refugees in Peru.
UNHCR says the goal of operations at its camp in Maicao is to provide shelter and food to the most vulnerable migrants and refugees, while partner organizations help legalize their status, find housing, or relocate them to other areas of Colombia. When a camp resident leaves, the space is given to someone else who has recently arrived from Venezuela.
One initiative known as the Quito Process has brought together countries affected by the migrant crisis to formulate a coordinated response, while another plan was launched last December with the aim of helping 2.2 million Venezuelans and 580,000 people in 16 countries.
Venezuela exodus surpasses 4 million, Angelina Jolie to visit region: UN
Venezuela exodus surpasses 4 million, Angelina Jolie to visit region: UN
- More than 1.3 million Venezuelans are in Colombia, followed by 768,000 in Peru and large numbers of migrants in Chile, Ecuardor, Brazil and Argentina, UNHCR said
Trump discussing how to acquire Greenland; US military always an option, White House says
- Greenland has repeatedly said it does not want to be part of the United States
- Strong statements in support of Greenland from NATO leaders have not deterred Trump
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump and his team are discussing options for acquiring Greenland and the use of the US military in furtherance of the goal is “always an option,” the White House said on Tuesday.
Trump’s ambition of acquiring Greenland as a strategic US hub in the Arctic, where there is growing interest from Russia and China, has been revived in recent days in the wake of the US arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Greenland has repeatedly said it does not want to be part of the United States.
The White House said in a statement in response to queries from Reuters that Trump sees acquiring Greenland as a US national security priority necessary to “deter our adversaries in the Arctic region.”
“The president and his team are discussing a range of options to pursue this important foreign policy goal, and of course, utilizing the US military is always an option at the commander-in-chief’s disposal,” the White House said.
A senior US official said discussions about ways to acquire Greenland are active in the Oval Office and that advisers are discussing a variety of options.
Strong statements in support of Greenland from NATO leaders have not deterred Trump, the official said.
“It’s not going away,” the official said about the president’s drive to acquire Greenland during his remaining three years in office.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said options include the outright US purchase of Greenland or forming a Compact of Free Association with the territory. A COFA agreement would stop short of Trump’s ambition to make the island of 57,000 people a part of the US.
A potential purchase price was not provided.
“Diplomacy is always the president’s first option with anything, and dealmaking. He loves deals. So if a good deal can be struck to acquire Greenland, that would definitely be his first instinct,” the official said.
Administration officials argue the island is crucial to the US due to its deposits of minerals with important high-tech and military applications. These resources remain untapped due to labor shortages, scarce infrastructure and other challenges.
Leaders from major European powers and Canada rallied behind Greenland on Tuesday, saying the Arctic island belongs to its people.
