Roraima state asks for help to keep Venezuela border secure

The government of northern Brazil's Roraima state asked the federal authorities for help to maintain the border with Venezuela secure given the increasing number of Venezuelans crossing the frontier due to the ongoing political and economic turmoil in the neighboring country.

Roraima state governor Suely Campos asked for the support of the armed forces to guard the border.

"I called president [Michel Temer] and sent two official notes to the Palácio do Planalto [presidential palace] explaining the serious situation facing our state's public security. The president was very sensitive to our demand and said he would meet with the defense minister to address the issue," Campos said in an interview for Globo website.

According to the state government, there are a number of clandestine routes in the region used for smuggling drugs and weapons into Roraima.

"We have 2,000km of land frontier. We want preventive action by the armed forces to curb the entry of these criminals and prevent Roraima from becoming a passageway for these crimes," added Campos.

In the first half of this year, 7,600 Venezuelans asked for refuge in Brazil, more than double the number in the same period of 2016, according to federal police figures quoted by Globo.

Earlier this month, South American trade bloc Mercosur suspended Venezuela from the group indefinitely. The decision came after President Nicolás Maduro (pictured) opened the new constituent assembly, which can rewrite the constitution and is seen by critics as a tool to cling on to power. The current national assembly is led by the opposition.