WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Joe Biden’s administration has not made an offer of amnesty to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to shield him from criminal prosecution in the United States in exchange for him giving up power since the South American country’s July 28 election, the White House said on Monday. Venezuela’s electoral authority has proclaimed […]
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US says it has not offered Maduro amnesty since election
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WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Joe Biden’s administration has not made an offer of amnesty to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to shield him from criminal prosecution in the United States in exchange for him giving up power since the South American country’s July 28 election, the White House said on Monday.
Venezuela’s electoral authority has proclaimed Maduro the winner of the election with 51% of the vote, although it has yet to produce the voting tallies.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday that the United States in secret talks offered Maduro amnesty to cede power.
White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre during a briefing on Monday said only that there have been no offers since the election.
“Since the July 28 elections, we have not made any specific offers of amnesty to Maduro or others,” Jean-Pierre said. “What I can speak to is, since the election, we have just not made that type of offer.”
(Reporting by Costas Pitas and Trevor Hunnicutt; Editing by Will Dunham)