Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Pompeo by phone that further “aggressive steps” in Venezuela would be fraught with the gravest consequences, the Russian ministry said. The U.S. State Department said Pompeo urged Russia in the call to stop supporting Maduro. On Tuesday, Pompeo accused Russia of intervening to persuade Maduro to abandon a plan to leave the country following a call by opposition leader Juan Guaido for Venezuela’s military to help him oust Maduro.
