U.S. President Donald Trump said that sending the military to Venezuela was “an option” and that he had turned down President Nicolás Maduro’s request for a meeting.

“Certainly, it’s something that’s on the... it’s an option,” Mr. Trump said in an interview with CBS to be broadcast on Sunday.

Mr. Trump said Mr. Maduro requested a meeting months ago and he turned down the Venezuela leader. “I’ve turned it down because we’re very far along in the process,” he said in excerpts from a CBS “Face the Nation” interview.

“So, I think the process is playing out — very, very big tremendous protests.”

Pressure on Maduro

As domestic and international pressure mounts on Mr. Maduro to step down, a senior Air Force General disavowed him in a video that circulated earlier on Saturday, expressing his allegiance to Parliament head and self-proclaimed interim President Juan Guaidó.

Meanwhile, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said on Sunday that the international community should focus on helping to solve Venezuela’s economic and social problems and refrain from any “destructive” interference. “The international community's goal should be to help (Venezuela solve socio-economic problems), without destructive meddling from beyond its borders,” Alexander Shchetinin, head of the Ministry's Latin American department, was cited by Interfax as saying.