TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras -- Honduras' interim government ordered Venezuelan diplomats on Tuesday to leave the country as the international community threatened new sanctions on the Central American nation if negotiations fail to resolve the crisis. Venezuelan Embassy charge d'affaires Ariel Vargas said he received a letter from the Honduran Foreign Ministry ordering his diplomats to leave in 72 hours.The government of Roberto Micheletti, whom congress swore in as president after the coup, accused Venezuela of meddling in its affairs and of threatening to use its armed forces against Honduras, according to a copy of the letter obtained by The Associated Press.
Vargas dismissed the allegations and - holed up in the embassy along with a consular officer also affected by the order - vowed to defy it. "We only have relations with the government of President Manuel Zelaya," Vargas told reporters outside the building. He said the expulsion order "does not exist for us, because the Micheletti government does not exist. It is a usurper government, a coup government, a government that is not recognized by anyone on an international level."
| Honduras should get its people out of Venezuela now ... |
The European Union, meanwhile, warned Tuesday that if talks to end the crisis fail, it may impose further sanctions against Honduras. The EU announced on Monday that it had already frozen some euro65 million ($92 million) in aid. Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt - whose country holds the rotating EU presidency - said the bloc is "considering different ways" to support mediation efforts by Costa Rican President Oscar Arias. He did not elaborate.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has told Micheletti there would be serious consequences if his government keeps ignoring international calls for Zelaya's return - the key point that led to a stalemate in U.S.-supported negotiations over the weekend.
Micheletti has vowed not to back down, and he sent a team to Washington this week to lobby against economic sanctions by painting the
Appealing to free trade supporters, Micheletti's team hopes to nudge the Obama administration away from its threat to impose sanctions on the impoverished country, where export-assembly factories are dominated by U.S. firms and investors. Business executives say U.S. Ambassador Hugo Llorens called them into meetings to say Honduras could face tough sanctions if leaders continue to refuse Arias' compromise proposal for Zelaya to return as head of a coalition government. The U.S. Embassy said it would not comment on the meetings.
| "Nice factory you got there, guys. Be a shame if anything happened to it ..." |