Expert: Trump's threats on Venezuela sound like an ultimatum

World
Europe

01:38

As U.S. President Donald Trump warns Venezuelan military to back opposition leader Juan Guaido or "lose everything," an expert said his threats sound like an ultimatum.

Addressing a crowd of Venezuelan and Cuban immigrants in Miami, Trump said that soldiers who remain loyal to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro would "lose everything," adding that they cannot "hide from the choice that now confronts them."

"It sounds terrible to many people in Latin America, because it sounds like an ultimatum," said Arturo Lopez Levy, an assistant professor of international relations at Gustavus Adolphus College in the United States.

Levy said military options were never on the table in Venezuela, and even Guaido's supporters have made it clear that they want a solution through dialogue.

Washington and its allies have mounted a sustained campaign to topple the Venezuelan government and position Guaido as the country's interim president.

Maduro has refused to allow so-called humanitarian supplies from the U.S. to enter the country. Even international bodies such as the United Nations and Red Cross have denounced U.S. aid and warned Washington against using food and medicines as a political tool.