WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 29th November, 2018) The government of Venezuela should recognize the dire humanitarian situation in the country and receive foreign assistance to assist its people, Canada's South America and Inter-American Relations Director-General Cheryl Urban said.
"We call on Venezuela and on the Maduro regime to recognize this as a crisis and to accept the international assistance and accept help," Urban said at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) on Wednesday.
Urban noted that Canada has been gradually allocating aid for Venezuela, including $2.2 million for Venezuelans in Colombia and $4 million for a regional fund to help migrants, but said the humanitarian crisis requires global response.
Urban pledged Canada will follow up on the issue of a comprehensive humanitarian response and will reach out to foreign governments.
Urban also said that efforts to isolate the government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro have been relatively successful, but the final resolution of the situation in the country should come from Venezuelans.
For years, Venezuela has been living in a state of a political and economic crisis, which was worsened by a decline in oil prices and US sanctions. Millions of Venezuelans have sought refuge, mostly in neighboring countries.
According to UN estimates, a total of 3 million people have left Venezuela, with some 2.4 million of them reside across Latin America and the Caribbean, including more than 1 million in Colombia.
