Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro speaks during a video conference meeting with members of his cabinet, at Miraflores Presidential Palace in Caracas, on June 1, 2020. (Photo by AFP)

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has hailed Iran, Russia, China, and Cuba as real friends of Caracas and expressed gratitude for their humanitarian aid.

Humanitarian aid is coming from China, Russia, Iran and Cuba. They are true friends, Maduro said in a televised speech on Sunday.

He also rebuked the US, saying Washington had promised $20 million in aid, but not a single dollar came through.

The United States has over the past few years imposed harsh economic sanctions on the oil-rich South American country to pressure the country’s President Maduro to step down, forcing millions of Venezuelans to abandon their homeland due to a lack of basic food and necessities.

The sanctions, which include the illegal confiscation of Venezuelan assets abroad and an economic blockade, have caused enormous suffering for millions of people in the country.

Last month, Iranian tankers delivered much-needed gasoline to the Latin American country facing a fuel crisis.

Upon the arrival of the first Iranian tanker, Venezuelans stormed Twitter to express gratitude towards Tehran for the shipments.

The shipments have stirred the wrath of the US administration in Washington as both Iran and Venezuela are under illegal sanctions imposed by the White House.

The administration of President Donald Trump, which has returned US sanctions against Iran after leaving a historic nuclear accord between the Islamic Republic and world powers, said last month that it was considering measures in response to the shipments.

SOURCE: PRESS TV