Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made clear Monday that the United States did not plan a military intervention in Venezuela even as he vowed that leftist leader Nicolas Maduro would one day fall.
In a speech on Latin America, Pompeo renewed President Donald Trump's promise to battle socialism across the hemisphere but said his policy in Venezuela was "mixed with restraint."
Pointing to hard-hitting US sanctions that include curbs on Venezuela's key export of oil, Pompeo said that US efforts have been "realistic, within the capacity of American power."