EU officially recognizes Guaidó as Venezuela’s president

The UK, France, Germany, Spain and other European countries have officially recognized opposition leader Juan Guaidó as interim president of Venezuela.

France, Spain, Germany, Britain, Portugal, Sweden, Denmark, Austria, and the Netherlands’ coordinated move came after the expiry of an eight-day ultimatum for Maduro to call a new election.

The Venezuelan leader, accused of running the OPEC nation of 30 million people like a dictatorship and wrecking its economy, has defied them and said European rulers are sycophantically following President Donald Trump.

In a TV interview, he warned that US President Donald Trump would leave the White House "stained with blood" if he intervened militarily in the crisis, which has arisen over the legitimacy of his re-election last year.

Guaidó said on Sunday he would build an international coalition to deliver humanitarian aid to Venezuelans.

Guaidó declared himself interim leader last month and won US backing.

Russia - a backer of Maduro - accused EU countries of meddling in Venezuela's affairs.

Russia and China, who have poured billions of dollars of investment and loans into Venezuela, are supporting Maduro in an extension of their geopolitical tussle with the United States.

“From today, we will spare no effort in helping all Venezuelans achieve freedom, prosperity, and harmony,” Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said, urging both fair elections and humanitarian aid.

British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said Venezuelans had suffered enough. “The oppression of the illegitimate, kleptocratic Maduro regime must end,” he said.

Maduro, 56, a former union leader, bus driver, and foreign minister, replaced ex-president Hugo Chavez in 2013 after his death from cancer. But he has presided over an economic collapse and exodus of 3 million Venezuelans.

The annual inflation rate reached 1,300,000% in the 12 months to November 2018, according to a study by the National Assembly.

By the end of 2018, prices were doubling every 19 days on average.