The US Embassy in Lima said Washington would continue to work with Peru as a “partner in democracy,” even as its government moves to shut down the country’s legislature amid an unprecedented political crisis.

The embassy declared its support for Peru’s “democratic institutions” in a brief statement cited by Reuters on Tuesday night, just one day after Peruvian President Martin Vizcarra declared parliament dissolved over fierce objections from opposition lawmakers, who slammed the move as a “coup” and in their turn “dismissed” Vizcarra from his post.

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Unlike in Venezuela, where opposition leader Juan Guaido enjoys full backing from Washington, the US had previously refrained from taking a side in Peru’s burgeoning struggle. Vizcarra’s government ironically threw support behind Guaido in January, soon after he declared himself “interim president” of Venezuela.

Some online couldn’t resist drawing comparisons between the two embattled countries. “It will be very fun to listen to Vizcarra, the Lima Group and the [Organization of American States] explaining why the interim president of Mercedes Araoz in Peŕu is not valid but that of Guaidó in Venezuela is,” one user tweeted.

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“The interim Vizcarra dissolves the Congress and the Congress suspends the interim Vizcarra. Guaido will have to take care of Peru,” another commenter joked, while a third asked “Did Guaidó proclaim himself President of Peru yet?”

With Washington finally taking notice of Peru’s crisis, however, some noted the country may soon find itself in bigger trouble, and become another victim of US-imposed “democracy” abroad. Previous initiatives yielded outcomes such as Iraq and Libya, where the floodgates of violence and extremism were smashed open by American bombing campaigns – or Syria, where US support for “moderate rebels” prolonged a bloody conflict by years and helped to tear the country apart – all in the name of “democratic institutions.”

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