The Pentagon put 50 Marines on alert the next day in case the United States needed to deploy a military force to the embassy in Caracas. As the standoff began, Mr. Pompeo appeared at a meeting of the Organization of American States in Washington to rally support for Mr. Guaidó and United States policy on Venezuela. Canada had already been at the forefront of taking an aggressive stand against Mr. Maduro. Mr. Trump has exerted pressure on Mr. Maduro through sanctions. Additionally, American officials recently announced punishments against a Russia-based bank that the United States said helped Mr. Maduro circumvent earlier sanctions.

Source: New York Times March 12, 2019 04:44 UTC