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CARACAS, Sept. 14 (Xinhua) -- Venezuela Wednesday criticized a decision by members of the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) to veto its turn to take over the presidency of the South American trade bloc.
"This decision by the triple alliance of Argentina, Paraguay and ... Brazil violates the legality of the organization," Venezuelan Foreign Affairs Minister Delcy Rodriguez posted on Twitter.
Rodriguez also said the government would soon respond to the veto in further details.
Mercosur is a sub-regional bloc established in 1991 to promote free trade and the movement of goods, people, and currencies. Its full members are Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela.
Mercosur's other four members claimed that Venezuela violated the bloc's principles by jailing opposition members and agreed to jointly head the bloc in the next six months.
They also set Dec. 1 as the deadline for Venezuela to "comply" with the bloc's regulations, or face suspension.
The Venezuelan government said leaders of the right-wing opposition have been handed jail terms for inciting violence in anti-government protests.
Uruguay's presidency of Mercosur expired at the end of July, sparking conflicts within the trade bloc.
