CHARGES( Reporting by Vivian Sequera; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)....

.( Reporting By Matt Spetalnick, additional reporting by Vivian Sequera and Mayela Armas in Caracas; Editing

Venezuela sanctions program that was created to force Maduro from power.( Reporting by Vivian Sequera

Sequera

CARACAS( Reuters)-Venezuelan opposition party Popular Will said on Wednesday that security forces detained family members of a Caracas activist, days after the arrest of opposition leader Freddy Guevara fueled concerns about a possible wave of detentions.... The government of President Nicolas Maduro this week accused Popular Will leaders of being linked to a recent outbreak of gang violence in the capital, and prosecutors are expected to charge Guevara with terrorism and treason.A new round of

CARACAS( Reuters)-Some supporters of an effort to remove Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from office through a referendum said on Saturday they would ask the country's top tribunal to review signature collection conditions set by the electoral commission. The national electoral commission said earlier this week that three opposition groups had requested a recall vote against Maduro, which would need 4.2 million signatures of support to go ahead. Venezuela's constitution allows officials who

CARACAS( Reuters)-Venezuela, a close ally of Russia, blamed NATO and the United States for the crisis in Ukraine, where Russian troops were advancing on the capital a little more than a day into their invasion of the neighboring country. Venezuela's foreign ministry said late on Thursday that NATO and the United States had violated the Minsk agreements, a 2014 deal aimed at ending a war in Donbas, a separatist region in eastern Ukraine. Russian missiles pounded Kyiv on Friday, as families cowere

CARACAS( Reuters)-European Union election observers began their mission in Venezuela on Thursday, as campaigning kicked off for regional elections next month which are set to include opposition candidates.It is the first time in 15 years the EU has sent observers to Venezuela.... Some 21 million voters are eligible to participate.... They will work in 22 of the country's 23 states, Santos said, adding no personnel will be sent to the Amazonas state due to transport difficulties and the coronav

The ENCOVI study was created in 2014 to make up for the absence of official data, according to Pedro Luis Espana, a UCAB sociologist who contributed to the study.... " It is the absence of opportunities," Espana said.... The survey was conducted through questionnaires distributed to 14, 000 households in 21 of the 23 states of the country between February and April....

Maduro denies the accusations.In June, top diplomats in Washington, Brussels and Ottowa said they would be willing to revise their sanctions on Maduro's government if the dialogue with the opposition led to significant progress toward free and fair elections.... " We have begun to discuss a complicated, difficult agenda." Venezuela's opposition, led by Juan Guaido, has accused Maduro of using previous rounds to buy time in the face of diplomatic and sanctions pressure by the United States and o