Venezuela suspends flights, Chile expresses regret.

The Chilean government expressed regret on September 25 over Venezuela's decision to suspend direct flights between the two countries.

Venezuela has decided to suspend flights to several countries. (Source: Business Traveller)

The Chilean Foreign Ministry said this was a unilateral decision, leaving nearly 800,000 Venezuelans living in Chile in a "dilemma".

Chile also described this as "an irrational act" and expressed "regret" over it.

Earlier, the Venezuelan Ministry of Transport announced the suspension of commercial passenger transport services between Venezuela and Chile.

This move further escalated diplomatic tensions between the two countries over the results of the presidential election in Venezuela.

Caracas decided to suspend commercial flights to Chile immediately after Chilean President Gabriel Boric called the Venezuelan government a "dictatorship" in a speech before the United Nations General Assembly.

Mr. Boric also called on the international community to recognize the results of the Venezuelan elections as belonging to opposition candidate Edmundo Urrutia instead of incumbent President Nicolas Maduro.

In addition, Caracas also decided to suspend many direct flights to Panama, the Dominican Republic, and Peru, accusing these countries of interfering in Venezuela's internal affairs.

Panama and the Dominican Republic are among the countries calling for a comprehensive review of the Venezuelan presidential election, with the condition that independent observers be involved.

According to Marisela de Loaiza, President of the Venezuelan Aviation Association (ALAV), the suspension of services with these countries is a "political" act, causing Caracas to lose 54% of its international connectivity.

According to ALAV, before July 31st, Venezuela had approximately 181 international flights per week, but now that number has dropped to only 83, equivalent to a reduction of about 15,000 seats per week.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/venezuela-tam-dung-cac-chuyen-bay-chile-lay-lam-tiec-287755.html