Despite declaring Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro illegitimate, the United States has maintained contact with him to ensure the safety of the embassy, a US envoy on the crisis said Wednesday. Elliot Abrams, who was appointed last week after the United States recognized opposition leader Juan Guaido as interim president, said that Washington was sending a message that Maduro needed to protect the mission. “We have contact with the de facto regime — by which I mean the Maduro regime.
