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Venezuela Says It’s Tracking Opposition Leader in U.S. Venezuela Says It’s Tracking Opposition Leader in U.S.
(about 1 hour later)
CARACAS, Venezuela — The bruising and often bizarre world of Venezuelan politics would seem to be a long way from New York City, but a top official here said this weekend that the government of President Hugo Chávez was tracking the movements of a prominent opposition politician while he was on a trip to New York and Miami. CARACAS, Venezuela — The bruising and often bizarre world of Venezuelan politics would seem to be a long way from New York City, but a top official here said this weekend that the government of President Hugo Chávez was tracking the movements of a prominent opposition politician while he was on a trip to Manhattan.
“We have him closely monitored,” Vice President Nicolás Maduro said Saturday of the opposition leader, Henrique Capriles Radonski.“We have him closely monitored,” Vice President Nicolás Maduro said Saturday of the opposition leader, Henrique Capriles Radonski.
“I have all the data, exactly where he is in Manhattan, in New York, at this moment,” Mr. Maduro said on government-run television, looking at his cellphone as if checking information sent to him in a text message or an e-mail.“I have all the data, exactly where he is in Manhattan, in New York, at this moment,” Mr. Maduro said on government-run television, looking at his cellphone as if checking information sent to him in a text message or an e-mail.
He said Mr. Capriles owned an apartment on East 85th Street and was staying there.He said Mr. Capriles owned an apartment on East 85th Street and was staying there.
“Let him deny it,” Mr. Maduro said. “What did he buy an apartment in New York with?”“Let him deny it,” Mr. Maduro said. “What did he buy an apartment in New York with?”
He drew laughter from his audience by calling Mr. Capriles “the prince of Manhattan, the prince of New York.”
In a telephone call Sunday night from New York, Mr. Capriles said he did not own an apartment there.
“Every time I leave Venezuela, the government tries to turn it into a conspiracy,” he said, adding that he was in New York to visit his sister and her family, who live in the East Side high-rise that Mr. Maduro mentioned. “It seems ridiculous to me, with all the problems that there are in Venezuela, that this is what the government is talking about.”
Mr. Capriles is the governor of Miranda state, which includes part of Caracas, the capital. He ran unsuccessfully against Mr. Chávez in October. If a special election is needed to replace Mr. Chávez, who has cancer, Mr. Capriles is likely to represent the opposition while Mr. Maduro is expected to run as the government candidate.Mr. Capriles is the governor of Miranda state, which includes part of Caracas, the capital. He ran unsuccessfully against Mr. Chávez in October. If a special election is needed to replace Mr. Chávez, who has cancer, Mr. Capriles is likely to represent the opposition while Mr. Maduro is expected to run as the government candidate.
Mr. Chávez, a socialist who fiercely criticizes the United States as an imperialist power, has not been seen in public since his Dec. 11 cancer surgery in Cuba. Mr. Maduro has been running the country in his absence and has incessantly attacked Mr. Capriles in speeches and public appearances, creating the impression that the government is gearing up for a special election.Mr. Chávez, a socialist who fiercely criticizes the United States as an imperialist power, has not been seen in public since his Dec. 11 cancer surgery in Cuba. Mr. Maduro has been running the country in his absence and has incessantly attacked Mr. Capriles in speeches and public appearances, creating the impression that the government is gearing up for a special election.
Mr. Maduro said Mr. Capriles had also traveled to Miami, and accused him of meeting with fugitive Venezuelan bankers and others Mr. Maduro said were conspiring to destabilize the country.Mr. Maduro said Mr. Capriles had also traveled to Miami, and accused him of meeting with fugitive Venezuelan bankers and others Mr. Maduro said were conspiring to destabilize the country.
Mr. Maduro sometimes calls Mr. Capriles the “decadent prince of the parasitic bourgeoisie.” On Saturday, he drew laughs from his audience when he said Mr. Capriles should instead be called “the prince of Manhattan, the prince of New York.” Mr. Capriles said he had had a stopover in Miami but had held no politically related meetings during his trip.
On Sunday morning, Mr. Capriles referred obliquely to Mr. Maduro’s allegations in a post on his Twitter account, saying, “Here I am with two big conspirators, full of future, my beloved nephews.” A linked photograph showed him with two young boys wearing the distinctive cap — in the national colors, yellow, blue and red — that Mr. Capriles popularized during his election campaign. While the suggestion by a foreign government that it was spying in the United States on an opposition politician would appear to be controversial, it was not clear from what Mr. Maduro said whether the Venezuelan government actually had someone following Mr. Capriles, or whether Mr. Maduro even had accurate information.
Another Twitter post by Mr. Capriles, on Friday night, said he had arrived at the Miami airport. “If they are following me, I haven’t noticed,” Mr. Capriles said, adding that the government was using intimidation tactics.
While the suggestion by a foreign government that it was spying in the United States on an opposition politician would appear to be controversial, it was not clear from what Mr. Maduro said whether the Venezuelan government actually had someone following Mr. Capriles and whether the information that he provided was accurate.
A reporter saw no sign of Mr. Capriles on Sunday at the glass high-rise condominium on the Upper East Side that Mr. Maduro mentioned on television. When the reporter asked for Mr. Capriles, a doorman called an apartment in the building and after speaking to someone said Mr. Capriles was not there. The doorman said he had not seen Mr. Capriles recently.
Mr. Maduro also said Saturday that Mr. Capriles was waiting to confirm a meeting with Roberta S. Jacobson, assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs.Mr. Maduro also said Saturday that Mr. Capriles was waiting to confirm a meeting with Roberta S. Jacobson, assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs.
On Sunday, Ms. Jacobson denied that.On Sunday, Ms. Jacobson denied that.
“We’re not aware of a trip by Governor Capriles to the United States, and I have no plans to meet with him at this point, so I’m not sure what they’re talking about,” Ms. Jacobson said in a telephone interview.“We’re not aware of a trip by Governor Capriles to the United States, and I have no plans to meet with him at this point, so I’m not sure what they’re talking about,” Ms. Jacobson said in a telephone interview.
It was at least the second time that Mr. Maduro had made televised comments about keeping track of Mr. Capriles during foreign trips. In early February, he spoke about Mr. Capriles’s visit to Colombia, criticizing him for meeting with a former Spanish prime minister, Felipe González.It was at least the second time that Mr. Maduro had made televised comments about keeping track of Mr. Capriles during foreign trips. In early February, he spoke about Mr. Capriles’s visit to Colombia, criticizing him for meeting with a former Spanish prime minister, Felipe González.
At that time, Mr. Capriles shot back at Mr. Maduro on Twitter, saying: “The job is too big for Mr. Maduro! He keeps mouthing off to cover up his incompetence.” New York City property records show that Mr. Capriles’s sister, Alexandra, and her husband bought an apartment in the East 85th Street building in 2011 for $4.1 million.
Venezuela, the fourth-largest supplier of foreign oil to the United States, has been beset by uncertainty during the more than 11 weeks since Mr. Chávez’s surgery, as the government seeks to hold course without its charismatic, micromanaging leader, although officials say he remains in charge. Mr. Maduro said Friday that Mr. Chávez was undergoing chemotherapy. An adjoining apartment is owned by a corporation that New York State records show has a chairwoman or chief executive named Mónica de Capriles, which is the name of Mr. Capriles’s mother; that apartment was bought for $2.9 million in 2009. Mr. Capriles said Sunday that he was not aware of any connection between his mother and the property.
Venezuela, the fourth-largest supplier of foreign oil to the United States, has been thrown into uncertainty since Mr. Chávez’s surgery, as the government seeks to hold course without the public presence of its charismatic, micromanaging leader, although officials say he remains in charge. Mr. Maduro said Friday that Mr. Chávez was undergoing chemotherapy.

Colin Moynihan contributed reporting from New York.

Colin Moynihan contributed reporting from New York.