Colombian President Gustavo Petro said this Thursday that the political solution in Venezuela depends on Nicolás Maduro and suggested “new free elections” in a message published through his X profile, formerly Twitter.
“The political solution that brings peace and prosperity to the Venezuelan people depends on Nicolás Maduro,” Petro said.
“All sanctions against Venezuela being lifted. General national and international amnesty. Full guarantees for political action. Temporary cohabitation government. New free elections,” he added.
At first, it seemed that Joe Biden was presenting himself in the same way as Petro since, at a press conference at the White House, he was asked about his support for the idea of new elections in Venezuela and he answered “Yes, I support it.”
However, this afternoon the White House walked back the statement by the President of the United States. The White House said the President was actually talking about how “absurd” it is that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro did not “clear” the country’s elections.
“The President was talking about the absurdity of how President Maduro and his representatives did not “clear” the July 28 elections. It is very clear to the majority of Venezuelans, the United States and many countries that Edmundo González Urrutia received the most votes on July 28,” a National Security Council spokesperson said Thursday.
“The United States once again calls on the United States to respect the will of the Venezuelan people and begin discussions on a transition to democratic norms,” the spokesperson said.
New elections in Venezuela, Brazil proposes
Celso Amorim, the chief international policy adviser to Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, has proposed a new election to combat the crisis in the country triggered by the dispute over the winner of the July 28 elections. proposed to hold new elections.
As reported this Wednesday by CNN Brazil, in addition to other local media, the idea was suggested to the President of Brazil.
This approach comes more than two weeks after the elections in which the National Electoral Council of Venezuela (CNE) declared President Nicolás Maduro the winner, although so far it has not published the data divided by center and polling station.
The opposition has rejected the figures announced by the Electoral Power, which confirms that the winner was Edmundo González, while there have been multiple reactions in the international community. Some countries supported Maduro, others were unaware of his victory and some other countries tried to mediate, such as Brazil.
María Corina Machado rejects the proposal for new elections
However, opposition leader María Corina Machado rejected the possibility of holding new elections as a solution to the country’s deep political crisis.
“What if Maduro doesn’t like the second election? Should we hold a third election? Will they accept it in their countries? We compete in elections under the rules of the regime. Talking about new elections is a lack of respect for the Venezuelan people and July 28,” Machado told reporters Thursday morning, before Biden gave his support to the initiative.
Editor’s note: This note has been updated with a White House statement retracting comments from Biden in which he appeared to support new elections in Venezuela.
