Venezuela accuses US of 'interventionist obsession'

Venezuela's government on Thursday rejected what it called the United States' "interventionist obsession" after US President Barack Obama backed steps for a referendum on removing his Venezuelan counterpart Nicolas Maduro from power. Obama warned Maduro's government on Wednesday not to block the opposition's "legitimate" efforts to hold a recall referendum. "The interventionist obsession of the US government is unacceptable," the Venezuelan foreign ministry responded in a statement on Thursday.