MADRID (Reuters) – Spain has requested Venezuela for details about studies on Saturday that two Spaniards, three US residents and a Czech have been arrested on suspicion of hyperlinks to an alleged plan to destabilize the South American nation, a Spanish overseas ministry supply stated.
Spanish media quoted Venezuelan Inside Minister Diosdado Cabello as saying the six have been arrested on suspicion of planning to “generate violence” and “destabilize” Venezuela.
“The Spanish embassy has sent a verbal note to the Venezuelan government asking for access to the detained citizens in order to verify their identities and their nationality and in order to know what they are accused of exactly,” a Spanish overseas ministry supply informed Reuters.
The Spanish nationals have been detained in Puerto Ayacucho, Spanish media quoted the minister as telling a press convention, including that about 400 rifles originating in the US had been seized.
The Spanish residents have been accused of belonging to the Spanish secret service. Spanish media reported Madrid denied this declare.
The arrests got here after the Venezuelan authorities recalled its ambassador to Spain this week for consultations and summoned the Spanish ambassador to seem on the overseas ministry, escalating diplomatic tensions following a disputed presidential election.
Caracas recalled its ambassador to Madrid and summoned Spain’s envoy to Venezuela for talks after a Spanish minister accused Maduro of operating a “dictatorship.”
Venezuela was additionally angered by the choice of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to satisfy with Venezuelan opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, who went into exile in Spain final week after being threatened with arrest by Maduro’s regime.
Caracas has additionally been engaged in a confrontation with the US, which acknowledged Gonzalez Urrutia because the winner of the July 28 ballot.
