Pompeo slams 'Maduro and his mayhem' in push for U.N. to back Venezuelan opposition leader

The United States is behind Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo wants the rest of the world onboard too.

On Saturday, Pompeo visited the United Nations in New York City and asked the body to acknowledge Guaidó as the legitimate leader of the South American nation. His call to back Guaidó comes amid democratic turmoil in the South American country, and it already has the European Union on his side, AFP reports.

In his Saturday address, Pompeo reiterated Vice President Mike Pence's earlier determination that Nicolás Maduro is a "dictator." The socialist leader claimed he won reelection in a vote widely seen as fraudulent last May, but Guaidó has declared himself "interim president" as he and opposition leaders call for a new election. Pompeo said it was time for the world to "pick a side" in the power struggle, telling the U.N. Security Council that "either you stand with the forces of freedom, or you're in league with Maduro and his mayhem," per AFP.

European leaders have since joined Pompeo's call, BBC notes. Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez tweeted that "we do not seek to change or remove governments," but "we want democracy and free elections in Venezuela," while U.K. Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said Maduro was "not the legitimate leader." Russia and China, though, have continued to back Maduro, with Russia's U.N. ambassador saying Saturday that Pompeo's move was a coup against Maduro's leadership.

The Wall Street Journal's David Luhnow used an analogy to President Trump and Congress to explain the whole leadership situation in a Twitter thread. Read it here.