Pompeo meets with Venezuelan opposition leader

Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó defied a travel ban to attend a three-day counterterrorism summit in Colombia. He met with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday. They discussed how to restore democracy to Venezuela, Pompeo said. The United States and 50 other countries have recognized Guaidó’s presidency since he invoked a constitutional clause in January 2019, but embattled leader Nicolás Maduro has continued to cling to power.

Is Guaidó at risk? It’s not the first time he has broken the travel restriction the pro-Maduro Supreme Court in Venezuela imposed on him. Last year, he snuck across the border into Colombia to seek humanitarian aid for Venezuela amid the ongoing economic crunch. The Washington Post reports that Guaidó plans to travel on to Davos, Switzerland, for the annual World Economic Forum, where he will ask European officials to increase pressure on the socialist government of Maduro. It’s unclear whether Venezuelan officials will allow Guaidó to return home.

Dig deeper: Read Marvin Olasky’s WORLD Magazine report on refugees who fled the Venezuelan crisis.