US President Donald Trump says sending the military to Venezuela is "an option" and that he has turned down President Nicolás Maduro's request for a meeting.
"Certainly, it's something that's on the - it's an option," Mr Trump said in an interview with CBS to be broadcast on Sunday.
Mr Trump said Mr Maduro requested a meeting months ago and he turned down the Venezuelan leader.
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"I've turned it down because we're very far along in the process," he said in excerpts from a CBS Face the Nation interview.
"So, I think the process is playing out - very, very big tremendous protests."
Tens of thousands of people have thronged the streets to protest the Maduro government, wearing the yellow, red and blue of the Venezuelan flag.
As domestic and international pressure mounts on Mr Maduro to step down, a senior air force general disavowed him in a video that circulated earlier on Saturday, expressing his allegiance to parliament head and self-proclaimed interim president Juan Guaidó.
Reuters
