ST. PETERSBURG, June 18. /TASS/. Alexander Shchetinin, director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Latin American department, on Saturday said the policies of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro have proved efficient in a challenging economic environment.
"The Venezuelan economy has shown in practice that it’s strong, that the government’s policy pursued by President Maduro in recent years in very difficult conditions has proved efficient," he told TASS on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.
Shchetinin said that important positive trends have now emerged in the economy of Venezuela. "We wish the Venezuelans that these positive trends strengthen. We will cooperate with them along these lines, continue to cooperate the way we have been doing it throughout all these past years: on the political level and, most importantly, in the material sphere, including in the sphere of energy resources."
"That's why a high-ranking Venezuelan delegation traveled here (to SPIEF - TASS), which had a wide range of contacts with our official representatives. We discussed how to move forward in achieving the goals that have been jointly set," the diplomat said.