CUCUTA, Colombia _ The Lima Group of nations _ a block of 14 largely Latin American countries _ is planning to step up sanctions and the political pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro but won't resort to violence to topple the man they see as a "dictator," officials said.
"The use of force, in any of its forms, is unacceptable," Peru's Vice Foreign Minister Hugo de Zela Martinez said Monday at the opening of a Lima Group conference in Colombia's capital. "The use of force is not a solution for what's happening in Venezuela."
The bloc is meeting to discuss next steps to deal with the growing crisis in Venezuela. Over the weekend, Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro shocked many in the international community by resorting to violence to stop the delivery of humanitarian aid from Colombia and Brazil. The ensuing clashes left hundreds injured, a handful dead and tons of destroyed aid.
Martinez said the incident had put Maduro's brutality in plain view. "There's now no doubt that the dictatorship has no limits when it comes to the repression of its people," he said.
U.S. Vice President Mike Pence met with Colombian President Ivan Duque and Venezuela's interim President Juan Guaido ahead of the meeting. The parties didn't discuss using military force to push aid into Venezuela. While Guaido pressed for continued international support, Pence said the weekend's events had steeled U.S. resolve.
"We must insist on the humanitarian mission," Pence said. "We will stand with you until your libertad' is restored."
Pence and Guaido are scheduled to address the meeting later Monday.
The United States, the European Union and others have already slapped Venezuela with harsh financial and energy sanctions. But Martinez said members were prepared to go further to increase pressure.
The bloc is also betting on a negotiated solution to the crisis. However, Martinez said any negotiations or talks have to focus on Maduro stepping down and calling of new "free, fair and just elections."
"We don't want to waste our time with meetings that have no clear goals," he said.
Also on Monday, the European Union said military intervention in Venezuela "must be avoided."
Venezuela has been marred in political turmoil since Jan. 23, when Guaido, as the head of congress, said it was his constitutional duty to assume the presidency after Maduro stayed in power through fraudulent elections last year. More than 50 countries, including most of Latin America and a large part of Europe recognize Guaido as president.
Maduro says the U.S. and the Lima Group are engaged in an illegal attempt to topple his administration, and that he has the right to rule through 2025. In his view, the aid convoys were part of a larger destabilization campaign. He's argued the U.S. and others need to drop economic and oil sanctions against that cost the nation billions and are hampering its ability to import food and medicine.
