India on Saturday urged its nationals to avoid all non-essential travel to Venezuela after US troops captured the South American country’s President Nicolas Maduro and his wife and took them to the US following a military assault on Caracas.
American forces launched an operation to capture Maduro after months of tension with the US, which accused the president of being involved in drug trafficking. Maduro denied the accusations. The US also carried out more than 20 air strikes in waters near Venezuela since September.
“In view of recent developments in Venezuela, Indian nationals are strongly advised to avoid all non-essential travel to Venezuela,” the external affairs ministry said in an advisory late on Saturday.
All Indians currently in Venezuela were advised to “exercise extreme caution, restrict their movements, and remain in contact” with the Indian embassy in Caracas through the email ID cons.caracas@mea.gov.in or the emergency phone number +58-412-9584288.
Article source: hindustantimes.com
