Czech President invites Venezuelan interim president Juan Guaidó to visit

President Miloš Zeman on Wednesday invited the self-proclaimed interim president of Venezuela, Juan Guaidó, to visit the Czech Republic, and congratulated the National Assembly leader on assuming the provisional office.

The gesture, announced by the president’s spokesman, came two days after the Czech government recognized Mr Guaidó as the legitimate leader of the South American country until free and transparent elections are called.

President Zeman noting that this year is the 30th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution and collapse of the communist regime in the former Czechoslovakia, said in the invitation, “I hope that your transition to democracy will succeed”.

Mr Guaidó took the presidential oath on January 23 after the National Assembly failed to recognize the second term of incumbent Nicolás Madura, who won re-election last year in a vote that international observers said was clearly rigged.