German minister: Venezuela's Maduro has no democratic legitimacy

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has no democratic legitimacy, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Wednesday, adding the country needed to hold free and fair elections quickly.

"To be clear: Nicolas Maduro lacks any democratic legitimacy. He is not the democratically elected president of Venezuela," Maas told German lawmakers after Venezuela's opposition leader Juan Guaido declared himself interim president last week.

(Reporting by Michelle Martin Editing by Joseph Nasr)