Crisis hits stand-still over emergency aid

Nearly three weeks after the Trump administration backed an all-out effort to overthrow Nicolas Maduro, there is little sign the Venezuelan president is losing his grip on power.

Dozens of nations have recognized opposition leader Juan Guaido’s claim to the presidency and the U.S. has tightened sanctions aimed at cutting off billions of dollars in oil revenue. But anti-Maduro street protests have come and gone, and large-scale military defections have failed to materialize.

With the U.S. virtually certain not to launch military action, Guaido is trying to regain momentum with an effort this week to move U.S. emergency food and medicine into Venezuela despite Maduro’s pledge to block it.