MONTEVIDEO (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd February, 2019) Filinto Duran, Venezuela's ambassador to Honduras, said that Honduran authorities had asked him to leave the country in the wake of their recognition of a diplomatic representative of Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido, who had proclaimed himself the country's interim president.
"I would like to inform you that last night, I was summoned by the Honduran Foreign Ministry, where they read to me a statement saying that [the authorities] did not recognize me as the ambassador any more and they notified me that I should leave the country together with my family in the course of five days," Duran said, as quoted by the local Heraldo newspaper.
The outlet added that Duran had informed the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry about the meeting. The ministry, in its turn, asked the ambassador to return to Venezuela in the course of the indicated period and noted that "Honduras, unfortunately, does not respect any international law or established protocols."
On January 21, large-scale protests against President Nicolas Maduro erupted in Venezuela.
On January 23, Guaido, the speaker of the opposition-led legislature, proclaimed himself the country's interim president. The opposition figure was supported by the United States and a number of other countries, while Russia, China, Mexico and several other states backed Maduro as Venezuela's only president.
