Peru orders Venezuelan diplomats out after contested vote

LIMA (Reuters) -Peru's government ordered Venezuelan diplomats in the Andean nation to leave within 72 hours, after Venezuela's electoral authority declared President Nicolas Maduro the winner of Sunday's election.

Venezuela's opposition and independent pollsters have derided a Maduro win as implausible.

Peru's foreign ministry made its announcement to dismiss Venezuela's diplomats in a statement citing the "serious and arbitrary decisions made today by the Venezuelan regime."

Peru is home to one of the largest communities of Venezuelan migrants, most of whom have fled their homeland in recent years.

Asked during an interview with CNN whether Peru will break off relations with its fellow South American nation, Foreign Minister Javier Gonzalez-Olaoechea answered: "It is not our wish, but we cannot rule it out."

He noted that several governments in the region are coordinating their actions over the contested vote "in the same chat."

Peru had said earlier on Monday it would not accept a violation of Venezuelans' popular will and that it had recalled its ambassador.

Many Latin American leaders have rejected the results or said that greater transparency is needed. The Organization of American States is also holding an extraordinary meeting to discuss the election on Wednesday.

(Reporting by Sarah Morland and Marco Aquino; Editing by David Alire Garcia)

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