The Portuguese government sent an elite Portuguese troop called GOE (Special Operations Group) to Venezuela to guard the Portuguese embassy, but they were prevented from entering the country by officials of the Bolivarian National Guard because, after checking the suitcases of the members of the organization, they found weapons.
According to the Lusitanian media RTP, the eight agents transported various diplomatic suitcases, containing weapons, helmets and bulletproof vests.
For 12 hours, intense diplomatic negotiations took place with no results. Given the intransigence of the Venezuelan authorities, the GOE returned to Lisbon.
The anti-terrorist unit had been preparing the mission for three weeks, in view of the worsening political and social situation in Venezuela.
They aimed to improve the security of the Portuguese embassy in Caracas. The GOE are responsible for the security of Portuguese diplomatic facilities around the world.
The incident occurred hours before Portugal recognized Juan Guaidó as interim president.