Pompeo says US won't quit fight in Venezuela, defends sanctions

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday defended sanctions on Venezuela and said the United States would not "quit the fight" in the socialist-run Latin American nation which is spiralling into deepening the economic and political crisis.

Pompeo is on a three-day trip to Chile, Paraguay and Peru, a clutch of fast-growing countries in a region where Washington's concerns are focused on China's growing presence as well as the Venezuelan crisis.

Washington is pressuring President Nicolas Maduro to step down and urging more countries to join the coalition supporting opposition leader Juan Guaido.

South America has seen a political shift in recent years towards the right, and most nations have backed Guaido.

Asked about China in Santiago, Pompeo warned about "predatory" lending practices and "malign or nefarious" actions, mirroring criticism previous US officials have made about China during Latin America trips.

China, whose booming economy over the past two decades has driven up demand for raw materials, is already the top trade partner for nations from tiny Uruguay to Brazil, Latin America's largest economy and the world's top soybean exporter. The pivot by Latin American countries towards China for financing has alarmed Washington.

Pompeo will travel later on Friday to Paraguay, the first visit by a U.S. secretary of state to the country since 1965, a gesture experts say underscores U.S. commitment to the region. On Sunday he is set to visit Cucuta, a Colombian border city receiving significant numbers of Venezuelan migrants fleeing hunger and violence in their homeland.