Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro has called the two detained Spaniards – who he links to Spain’s National Intelligence Center (CNI) – “terrorists” for their alleged links to a destabilization operation against his regime.
In his weekly program broadcast on the state television channel VTVMaduro said that the two citizens of the European country are “infiltrated agents” of the CNI and rejected the statements of the parents of the Spaniards that they were in Venezuela as tourists, after having visited Colombia.
Maduro stated that the two “were captured and have been convicted, they have confessed and have clear proof of the actions they were carrying out inside Venezuela to murder people, plant bombs, etc.”
“Now they say they were good guys, tourists, who were out for a walk and were captured,” Maduro said, with irony, adding, without presenting evidence, that “it is very surprising that the Spanish CNI is involved in operations against Venezuela.”
In turn, Venezuela’s Interior Minister, Diosdado Cabello, an ally of Maduro and number 2 in Chavismo, said that the CNI, despite being linked to the Spanish Ministry of Defense, is a “completely autonomous entity” that “carries out operations all over the world, complying with the instructions given by the (United States intelligence agency) CIA.”
The Spaniards are Andrés Martínez Adasme and José María Basoa Valdovinos, aged 32 and 35 respectively, who were detained in Puerto Ayacucho and on whose phones, according to the Venezuelan regime, conversations were found in which they asked “how to buy explosives” and “contact groups that wanted to do some special work”.
Spain’s Foreign Ministry has denied that the country is involved in a “political destabilization operation” in Venezuela and “categorically rejected any insinuation” to that effect.
The ministry also denied that the two detainees are or have been part of the CNI, as alleged by the Chavista dictatorship, or that they work for any other state body.
According to the families of the Spaniards, both were in Venezuela as tourists. On the 9th, without having any news about the two, they reported their disappearance on social media and to the police. (With EFE Agency)
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