Russian Lawmaker Says US Intel Agencies Recruited Guaido During Internship In Serbia

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd February, 2019) Serbian officials confirmed that Venezuelan parliament speaker Juan Guaido was recruited by the US intelligence agencies while he was doing an internship at the Serbian political organization Otpor 10 years ago, Andrei Klimov, the chairman of the Russian Federation Council's commission for the protection of state sovereignty, told Sputnik on Friday.

"I cannot disclose their Names, but they are Serbian officials, and they have confirmed the information that our commission has that Guaido was recruited [by the US intelligence] in Serbia, when he was doing an internship at the courses [organized] by Otpor," Klimov said.

Klimov has recently returned from Belgrade, where he participated in a plenary session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean.

Guaido proclaimed himself the country's interim president on January 23. Venezuela's sitting President Nicolas Maduro has in the meantime called him a US puppet and accused Washington of organizing a coup in Venezuela.

The United States, Canada and a number of other countries have recognized Guaido's leadership, while Russia, China, Mexico and Turkey have stressed that Maduro is the legitimate president and called for dialogue.