Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro speaks during an event in Caracas on Saturday. Maduro sang British musician John Lennon's iconic song, "Imagine," during a ceremony amid growing tensions with the United States, whose government he accused of seeking to "bomb and invade" his country. Photo by Miguel Gutierrez/EPA
Nov. 18 (UPI) -- After President Donald Trump said he was open to a conversation with Venezuela's president, Nicolás Maduro said he is willing to hold a "face-to-face" meeting with anyone who wants to talk.
On his weekly program "Con Maduro+," broadcast on the state-run Venezolana de Televisión, Maduro said Monday night that "this country is at peace, this country will remain at peace. And in the United States, whoever wants to talk with Venezuela will talk face-to-face, without any problem."
Amid heightened tensions over the presence of U.S. military forces in Caribbean waters near Venezuelan territory, Maduro added, "Anyone who wants dialogue will always find in us people of our word, decent people and people with the experience to lead Venezuela."
He stressed that "what cannot be allowed is the bombing and massacre of a Christian people, the Christian people of Venezuela," rejecting any action that could be interpreted as direct aggression.
