BUENOS AIRES, Aug. 16 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Vice President Mike Pence seeks to increase the pressure on Venezuela in the region during his ongoing Latin American tour, said an Argentinean deputy to the Mercosur Parliament.
"Pence has planned a trip that, besides Argentina, includes Colombia, Chile and Panama, with the sole declared objective of pressuring our countries even more to further close the circle around Venezuela," said Oscar Laborde in an interview with Xinhua.
Pence embarked on a four-state Latin America tour Sunday, starting from Colombia. After visiting Argentina and Chile, he will travel to Panama Thursday.
"The presence of a high foreign official in our country creates expectations about what his visit will bring, what agreements will be signed, what positive impact will remain," Laborde said.
However, as Laborde sees it, Pence would not be discussing any trade deals or investment plans.
"Just at the moment that Venezuela sees its Constituent Assembly at work and there is quiet in the streets, when the opposition has accepted to take part in the October regional elections, Pence arrives in Latin America to increase the pressure," he added.
On Tuesday, Pence said to reporters in Argentina that Washington will continue to put economic and political pressure on Venezuela. He also thanked Argentinean president for his "regional leadership" in investigating Venezuelan officials later targeted with U.S. sanctions, and for "suspending Venezuela from Mercosur," the South American trade bloc, in a bid to isolate the country's government.
Washington, which backs the right-wing opposition in Venezuela, claims that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has destroyed democracy by electing the National Constituent Assembly to amend the Constitution, a mechanism that Venezuela's charter provides as a means of modifying or updating laws.
U.S. President Donald Trump last week said he would not rule out a "military option" to oust Maduro and his ruling United Socialist Party from power, a claim that was seen as a sudden escalation of Washington's response to Venezuela's crisis.
According to Laborde, Pence is seeking to include Argentina, along with Colombia, Brazil and Peru, in a possible military alliance to stop the "dictatorship of Maduro."
However, since Trump threatened a military option, Latin American leaders have closed ranks to rule out any such plan.
Peru has voiced its rejection of any kind of threats or use of force unauthorized by the United Nations, and called for dialogues among related parties on Saturday.
Pence's tour has also been shadowed by opposing voices from his host countries.
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos said on Sunday that a military intervention "shouldn't even be considered," and called for a negotiated solution to the crisis.
Argentinean President Mauricio Macri on Wednesday also dismissed the use of force in Venezuela.
On Monday, Maduro has called for international talks to resolve differences and counter the U.S. aggression, and asked members of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States "to put peace, dialogue and the solution of Latin American affairs on the table, so we can continue to be a land of peace."
Laborde, in his interview, noted that "Mike Pence is coming to ask us to join a very dangerous escalation for our country, only benefiting North American interests."
