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Maduro makes surprise visit to Qatar, reshuffles cabinet

Xinhua, September 5, 2015 Adjust font size:

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro made a surprise visit to Qatar on Friday to discuss the slump of world oil prices. From that nation, he appointed new ministers to replace socialist candidates ahead of December's parliamentary elections.

In an unexpected stop after visiting Vietnam and China, Maduro arrived in Doha to meet the emir of Qatar and discuss ways to stabilize the global oil price as well as new financial and economic cooperation agreements between the two nations.

It is his second visit to Qatar this year and his third meeting in the year with its emir, Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani, over the slide in global oil prices.

Venezuela has been calling for an extraordinary meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to reduce production, but Gulf nations such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar are reluctant to do so.

Minutes after arriving in Doha, Maduro appointed five new ministers to his cabinet to replace socialist candidates who will compete in this year's parliamentary elections that will go on to the political campaign.

In various Twitter posts, the head of state thanked the outgoing ministers and government officials and wished them good luck in the elections.

Rodulfo Perez was appointed the new Minister of Education, Clara Vidal the new Minster for Indigenous Peoples, Jose Bernardo takes over the Transportation and Public Infrastructure portfolio while General Jessus Salazar was promoted from Maduro's security chief to Minister of the Presidential Office.

Later, it was announced that Isis Ochoa had been named Minister of Social Movements and that Foreign Minister Delcy Rodrigues would also become Vice-President and Minister of Women's Affairs.

While in China, Maduro attended Thursday's military parade marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II and met with Chinese President Xi Jinping to deepen bilateral cooperation. Endit