Maduro calls for ceasefire but orders mobilization

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced Friday his country's armed forces will mobilize artillery in the next few hours to prepare for possible violent actions in the South American nation.

Without offering further details, at a Council of State meeting, Maduro explained he ordered within the framework of the "Bolivarian Shield" military exercises that began on February, to "be prepared for combat."

During his speech, the president affirmed there were groups, financed from the United States and Colombia, who were preparing armed and violent actions amid the coronavirus pandemic.

He also announced that his government will donate two COVID-19 testing machines to Colombia.

The announcement of the mobilization of military weapons comes a few days after the United States agreed to send Navy ships to Venezuela to reinforce its anti-drug operations in the Caribbean.