to the restoration of its democracy and its freedom. therefore, we believe that juan guaidó is the right man to take venezuela forward and we will recognize him as constitutional interim president if new elections are not announced within eight days. we should today all stand together against the tyranny of nicolas maduro and his support democraticmate forces in venezuela. venezuela can and must recover from the depths of its current despair. end too, it needs an tyranny, and in to corruption, and an urgent return to freedom, democracy, and the rule of law. this security council must make it clear and urgently help pave the way to a brighter future for has souela that maduro

culpably ruined. sec. pompeo: good morning. on behalf of president trump and the american people, i want to thank the foreign minister and counsel for scheduling this meeting. my former colleague, ambassador haley, lobbied for a year to get the council to address venezuela, but her pleas fell on deaf ears. you know why it is overdue. take a 37-year-old construction worker weeping over the tiny coffin of his deceased infant son who died of starvation. such scenes of misery are the norm in nicolas maduro's venezuela, where millions of children are suffering from now >> malnutrition -- malnutrition and starvation thanks to a socialist experiment that caused the economy to collapse. this human misery is not a secret. stories like this one are

documented by our press corps. you can read about men like carlos every day. people like him are why the united states called this meeting. we are here because maduro has reduced ordinary venezuelans who lived in prosperity to rooting through dumpsters to find something to eat. we are here because scores of venezuelan women, some of them teenagers, have fled maduro's madness to other countries and turn to prostitution to survive. we are here because of maria, a school psychologist, who said through tears we have a government dedicated to destroying, not constructing. another man, a farmer named vladimir, who never got more than a sixth grade education, hoped that his step daughter gabriella could fulfill her dreams of being a lawyer. she says that our whole future has been taken away. that future for her and venezuelans did not disappear on

its own. the nicolas maduro regime stole that future. the united states is hoping to recover a brighter future for venezuela and we are here to urge nations to support the democratic aspirations of the venezuelan people. the humanitarian situation demands action now. it demands action today. today, nine out of 10 citizens live in poverty. millions lack access to drinking water and food. three out of four hospitals have been abandoned. 3 million venezuelans have been forced to flee their homeland, flooding the region and threatening international peace and security. maduro's prisons are full of political prisoners unjustly behind bars, and graveyards hold dissidents that have been killed by the regime. i want to talk about one of

them. a member of the city council of caracas. four months ago, he came to the city to meet with world representatives who gather here every year during united nations general assembly to speak about the failures of the maduro regime and hopes for a democratic and prosperous future for his country. after that he went home. he went home to the country that he loved. maduro's secret police arrested him at the airport when he landed. he died in custody three days later. the pathetic explanations of the death convinced no one. the time is now to support the venezuelan people to recognize the new democratic government led by interim president guaido and end of the nightmare. no excuses. the united states stands with the venezuelan people. many other nations have chosen to do the same thing and

recognize the legitimate government of interim president guaido. the united states stands proudly with you as we stand in support of venezuela. you knew that the venezuelan people did not have a moment to spare. now it is time for every other nation to pick a side. no more delays. no more games. either stand with the forces of freedom or you are in league with maduro. some countries have formally taken president maduro's side. china, russia, syria, and iran are four of them. this morning, we tried to find a way for this counsel to speak in one voice to the venezuelan people's support and democratic ideals of this council, but the russian and chinese colleagues refused to let this move forward. it is not a surprise that those who rule without democracy in their countries are trying to prop up maduro while he is in dire straits. nor are these countries supporting international norms as they cynically claim.

china and russia are propping up a regime to recover millions of dollars in assistance over the years. the money was never intended to help the venezuelan people. it lined the pockets of the maduro regime, its cronies and benefactors. for years, cuban security and intelligence invited into venezuela by maduro himself, have sustained the illegitimate rule. they have trained maduro's security henchmen in cuba's worst practices. the cuban security minister provides president maduro's security. members use microphones to condemn for interference in international affairs. let's be clear. the foreign power meddling in venezuela is cuba. cuba has made matters worse. the united states and our partners are the true friends of the venezuelan people.

on wednesday the venezuelan people chose to take their country back on the anniversary of the day that the dictator was forced out of power in 1958. we call for venezuelans to work now together to peacefully restore the constitutional government and return the country to a secure, democratic, prosperous path. as we read reports of peaceful venezuelan protesters killed or wounded, we repeat insistence that venezuelan security forces show restraint. i want to be 100% clear. president trump and i fully expect that our diplomats will continue to receive protections under the geneva convention. -- i think the unit convention.

vienna convention. do not test the united states' resolve to protect our own people. we hope the international community will support the venezuelan people and the transitional government led by juan guaido. he made the declaration with the full support of the national assembly and the venezuelan people. our nations must stand up for the rule of law and support the leader that the venezuelan people have affirmed as their legitimate interim president. we hope fair elections happen as soon as possible. in 1961 president kennedy spoke in caracas, "we will be partners in building a better life for our people." america's ambition has not changed. we stand with the venezuelan people as they stand to build a better life for themselves, and

cannot ignore the suffering in this proud nation. nor should other countries who care about freedom and prosperity. we call on members of the security council to support venezuela's democratic transition and interim president juan guaido's role in it. >> c-span's "washington journal," live every day. coming up sunday morning, democratic pollster ben winston dj republican pollster martinez discussed the 2020 shutdown -- the government shutdown and the 2020 presidential race. the discussion of the history and role of special prosecutors. be sure to watch c-span's "washington journal" live at 7 a.m. sunday morning. join the discussion. >> next, mayors from across the

u.s. talk with diplomats about the u.s.-canada-mexico trade agreement. this was discussed at the u.s. conference of mayors in washington, d.c. chatter]ct good afternoon. good afternoon. , mayors. take your seat. a packed house. not surprised. i think all of you for being here. in the mayor of the great city of san diego. q to have you. we welcome also our c-span audience joining us here today. --