Top of The World: US President Joe Biden called the airlift of more than 120,000 Americans, allies and Afghans an “extraordinary success.” And, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will meet with Biden in Washington DC on Wednesday, in what has been described as a show of renewed support for Ukraine’s sovereignty. Also, opposition parties in Venezuela announced in a strategy shift, that they will participate in the November local and regional elections.
A year has passed since 1,400 soldiers defected from Venezuela's military hoping for the ouster of President Nicolás Maduro. But Maduro is still firmly in control and some soldiers feel they gambled their careers away while they struggle to get by in neighboring Colombia.
In the annual State of the Union speech, US President Donald Trump touted the economy and promised to lower health costs for Americans while slamming Democratic plans he argued would bankrupt the country and cut benefits in a largely political address to Congress.
Dubbing their planned offensive "Operation Venezuela," ex-army sergeant Eddier Rodríguez said there were around 150 men ready to take part with his group.
Two Venezuelan lawmakers sought refuge at foreign embassies in Caracas on Thursday, as the government of President Nicolás Maduro cracked down on allies of opposition leader Juan Guaidó who supported his attempted uprising last week.
Venezuelan opposition politician Leopoldo Lopez, evading arrest in a Spanish diplomatic residence, on Thursday disclosed he met with senior military officials before a failed uprising against President Nicolás Maduro this week.
Venezuelans heeded opposition leader Juan Guaidó's call to take to the streets on Wednesday in a bid to force President Nicolás Maduro from power, but there was little concrete sign of change in a crisis that increasingly looks like a political stalemate.
Reuters witnesses said several dozen mostly young armed men in military uniform accompanying Guaidó exchanged gunfire with soldiers acting in support of Maduro outside the La Carlota air base but the opposition did not appear to be about to take power by force.
Angry Venezuelans set up burning barricades near the presidential palace in Caracas and in other parts of the country on Sunday in protests over constant power outages and shortages of drinking water in the wake of two major blackouts this month.
As Juan Guaidó and Nicolás Maduro continue to vie for power in Venezuela, former and current Chavistas struggle to make sense of the legacy of the Bolivarian Revolution.
Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó plans to run the risk of arrest by returning home on Monday, after he ignored a court-imposed travel ban and toured Latin American allies to boost support for his campaign to oust President Nicolás Maduro.