WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The United States has expelled two Venezuelan diplomats in retaliation against Caracas's expulsion order against the top two US diplomats there.
The State Department said Wednesday that it declared the Chargé d'Affaires of the Venezuelan embassy and the Deputy Consul General of the Venezuelan consulate in Houston 'personae non grata' in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and Consular Relations.
They have been directed to leave the United States within 48 hours.
'This action is to reciprocate the Maduro regime's decision to declare the Chargé d'Affaires and Deputy Chief of Mission of the U.S. Embassy in Caracas personae non grata,' State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert said in a statement.
She alleged that the accusations behind the Maduro regime's decision are unjustified. She claimed that the US Embassy officers have carried out their official duties responsibly and consistent with diplomatic practice and applicable provisions of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. 'We reject any suggestion to the contrary,' she added.
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