Army declares loyalty to Maduro as Venezuela braces for giant protestApril 18, 2017 - 10:29 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Venezuela's defense minister on Monday, April 17 declared the army's loyalty to President Nicolas Maduro, who ordered troops into the streets ahead of a major protest by opponents trying to oust him, AFP reports. Venezuela is bracing for what Maduro's opponents vow will be the "mother of all protests" Wednesday, after two weeks of clashes between police and demonstrators protesting against moves by the leftist leader and his allies to tighten their grip on power. The center-right opposition has called on the military -- a pillar of Maduro's power -- to turn on the president amid an economic and political crisis that has triggered severe food shortages, riots and looting. But Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez said the army "confirms its unconditional loyalty to the president." He made the comment before thousands of rifle-carrying members of the pro-Maduro "Bolivarian militia," who cheered with fists raised at a rally outside the presidential palace. Maduro thanked the army and the militia for their support and announced he planned to expand the latter civilian force to half a million armed members. "Loyalty is repaid with loyalty," he said. The rally came hours after Maduro ordered the military into the streets to defend the leftist "Bolivarian revolution" launched by his late mentor Hugo Chavez in 1999. "From the first reveille (on Monday morning), from the first rooster crow, the Bolivarian National Armed Forces will be in the streets... saying, 'Long live the Bolivarian revolution,'" he said Sunday night in a televised address. He called for the militia to be in "permanent training" and "permanent deployment" to defend Venezuela against "any imperialist aggression" -- a thinly veiled reference to the United States. Senior opposition leader Henrique Capriles dismissed Maduro's announcement. "The old fogey has announced one rifle for every militia member. He is more desperate than ever," Capriles wrote on Twitter. "Venezuela does not want rifles, it wants food and medicine!" Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Armenian delegation participating in NATO PA session The delegation is headed by Andranik Kocharyan, the chairman of the standing committee on defense and security matters. Schengen visa cost won’t change for Armenia – diplomat The increase in the cost of a Schengen visa will not apply to citizens of Armenia, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson has said. Yeremyan Projects opens state-of-the-art dairy production plant Yeremyan Projects officially launched the Yeremyan Products state-of-the-art milk processing plant in Yerevan on May 24. Armenian PM’s helicopter makes emergency landing in Vanadzor The helicopter transporting Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan made an emergency landing in Vanadzor. |