Venezuelan president claims country has detained U.S. citizens for 'espionage'

At a rally on Saturday, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro condemned what he says are moves by the United States to unseat him, Reuters reports.

"We have captured some U.S. citizens in undercover activities, espionage, trying to win over people in towns along the Venezuelan coast," Maduro said. "In Tachira, we captured a pilot of a U.S. plane (who is) of Latin origin (carrying) all kinds of documentation."

A U.S. embassy spokesman in Caracas declined to comment on Maduro's statements, saying that there had not been any official, diplomatic communication with the Venezuelan government on Maduro's charges. But an Obama administration official dismissed the accusations, calling them "baseless and false."

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Maduro also said he would institute visa fees for Americans who want to enter Venezuela, reduce the number of U.S. embassy officials allowed in Caracas, and bar certain U.S. citizens from entering the country, including former President George W. Bush and former Vice President Dick Cheney.