13 September 2016: Mercosur threats with an ultimatum to Venezuela
The founding members of Mercosur: Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay warns Venezuela in an ultimatum way among concern over the country's human rights regulations, restrictions on the political opposition and failure to comply with trade rules. The four founding countries also said Venezuela would be blocked from taking over Mercosur's rotating presidency in June, which has turned to the right after years dominated by leftist governments. Mercosur demands to protect human rights and enacting a law guaranteeing free movement of Mercosur citizens.
Facing food shortages and political turmoil, Venezuelan leftist President Nicolas Maduro has come under greater international pressure to concede to opposition calls for a revote of his leadership this year. Venezuela as a petrol-rich country was accepted into the trade bloc in 2012 with a four-year timeline to meet all requirements.
