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Exclusive: U.S. in direct contact with Venezuelan military, urging defections - source

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States is holding direct communications with members of Venezuela’s military urging them to abandon leader Nicolas Maduro and is also preparing new sanctions aimed at increasing pressure on him, a senior White House official said.

The Trump administration expects further military defections from Maduro’s side, the official told Reuters in an interview, despite only a few senior officers having done so since opposition leader Juan Guaido proclaimed himself interim president last month, earning the recognition of the United States and dozens of other countries.

“We believe these to be those first couple pebbles before we start really seeing bigger rocks rolling down the hill,” the official said this week, speaking on condition of anonymity. “We’re still having conversations with members of the former Maduro regime, with military members, although those conversations are very, very limited.”

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-politics-military-exclusive/exclusive-u-s-in-direct-contact-with-venezuelan-military-urging-defections-source-idUSKCN1PX22L