Santos expresses concern over Venezuela unrest; Maduro not amused

Venezuela’s President, Nicolas Maduro, on Wednesday told his Colombian counterpart Juan Manuel Santos to refrain from commenting on ongoing political unrest in Colombia’s neighbor to the west after Santos had called for calm.

In a speech on Tuesday, Santos said he has a vested interest in the ongoing problems in Venezuela as the two countries are inextricably linked and “everything that happens there, good or bad, affects Colombia.”

Additionally, Santos said to be concerned about the recent deportation of Colombian nationals.

“With concern we witnessed the recent deportation of Colombians, compatriots who have complained they were deported without just cause,” said Santos.

The Colombian President called for “calm” and the need to “establish channels of communication between the different political forces in Venezuela to ensure the stability of the country.”

Maduro defended his actions in a response and asked Santos: “What would you rather I do? Leave these masked groups alone while they attack metro workers?” and describes those fighting against him as “some crazy people with no moral or ethical boundaries.”

Maduro said that “the problems of the Venezuelans will be solved by the Venezuelans.”

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There has been unrest in Venezuela with ongoing anti-government protests that have gripped the major urban centers in Venezuela since last Wednesday. The protests have focused on the grievances of high crime levels and inflation.

In the wake of the violent confrontations, Venezuela has closed international and national media outlets as well as the social media platform, Twitter.