Mormon church pulls Venezuela missionaries

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is reassigning its missionaries in Venezuela to other Spanish-speaking countries, a church spokesman said.

“The church has experienced difficulty over the past few months in renewing visas for missionaries, and in obtaining new visas, in Venezuela,” Dale Bills said in a statement Monday.

Missionaries serving in Venezuela also will be reassigned to missions in the United States and Canada where needed, Bills said.

U.S. relations with Venezuela have been rocky lately, with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez claiming his government is preparing for a possible U.S. invasion. The U.S. government denies it plans to invade.