Juan Guaido

A pattern has developed under the Maduro regime. When pressure builds, the first recourse is to repress and persecute. I know this because buckshot pellets fired by members of the armed forces - at peaceful protesters in 2017 - remain lodged in my own body. A minor price to pay compared to the sacrifices made by some of my compatriots.

Doing politics in Venezuela is a risk, and you can pay with your life.

As president of the National Assembly, I am fully able and willing to assume the office of the presidency on an interim basis to call for free and fair elections.

The exercise of politics is criminalized in Venezuela.

I personally don't believe that Russia and China are on Maduro's side - they are simply protecting their investments here in Venezuela.

I would like to be clear about the situation in Venezuela: Mr. Maduro's re-election on May 20, 2018, was illegitimate, as has since been acknowledged by a large part of the international community.

I've been getting calls from childhood friends who left the country and who tell me they finally have hope that they will return, and they tell me they will use everything they have learned living abroad to rebuild the country.

If we look at the day-to-day suffering of the Venezuelan people, that's not about numbers: it's about human beings.

The most important element for any economy is confidence.

I was 15 when Hugo Chavez came to power in 1998. At the time, I lived in Vargas State, which borders the Caribbean. In 1999, torrential rains caused flash floods that left thousands of people dead. I lost several friends, and my school was buried in the mudslide. The importance of resilience has been etched into my soul ever since.