Russia 'concerned' about US actions in Venezuela

By Elena Teslova</p> <p>MOSCOW (AA) – The U.S. intention to evacuate the rest of its embassy staff from Caracas is &quot;alarming,&quot; according to Russian officials.</p> <p> &quot;It is alarming because the news was accompanied by the comment of U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that the ‘presence of U.S. personnel limits U.S. actions.’ What are these actions?&quot; Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told a Friday news conference in Moscow.</p> <p>She called a recent power outage in Venezuela &quot;an act of sabotage, organized from outside,” and said its &quot;harmful impact on infrastructure&quot; is being used as one of the tools of hybrid war.</p> <p>Despite U.S. efforts, two-thirds of UN member states have not recognized Juan Guaido as Venezuela's interim president and Zakharova demanded Washington abandon its plans to overthrow the legitimate government.</p> <p> </p> <p>- Child deaths in Syria</p> <p>Turning to Syria, Zakharova expressed concern for the situation in al-Rukban and al-Hol refugee camps, decrying the death rate among children.</p> <p>Since the beginning of the year, deplorable sanitation, famine and cold have taken lives of 100 people in al-Hol, two-thirds of them children, and 12 children in Rukban died, including five newborns, she said.</p> <p>Turkey and Iran will continue their efforts on the Syrian issue, she said.</p> <p>&quot;A meeting at the level of the deputy foreign ministers of the Astana format is planned for April. Experts from the three countries are constantly in touch,&quot; she said.</p> <p> </p> <p>- Iran's nuclear domain ‘model’ of transparency</p> <p>Tehran is rigorously complying with the Iran nuclear deal, said Zakharova, as regularly confirmed by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).</p> <p>&quot;Nuclear activities in the country are under the constant control of the agency and are a model of transparency,&quot; she said.</p> <p> </p> <p>