US President Joe Biden has called the exiled candidate for Venezuela’s opposition, Edmundo González, “the true winner” of the country’s presidential election last July after meeting him at the White House.
In a post on social media, Biden said Venezuela deserved a “peaceful transfer of power”.
González fled to Spain in September after turmoil following Venezuela’s election, in which incumbent President Nicolás Maduro claimed victory – something disputed by González and many sections of the international community.
Caracas reacted to the meeting with fury, calling it “grotesque” and accusing Biden of backing a violent anti-democratic project, Reuters news agency reports.