Lavrov lodges protest with Pompeo over US attempting a coup in Venezuela

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday that he believed the United States had tried to organize a coup in Venezuela and this violated the United Nations charter, the foreign ministry said.

Earlier on Monday, the State Department said Pompeo had called on Russia to cease what he called its "unconstructive behavior" by supporting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and condemned Russian military support for his government.