Biden will “closely follow” the protests planned for January 9 in Venezuela
Former presidential candidate Edmundo González stated this Monday that he had a “long, fruitful and cordial” meeting with the president of the United States, Joe Biden, in Washington as part of his international tour before the inauguration in Venezuela.
“It was a long conversation in which we addressed various aspects of the bilateral relationship and we, of course, were grateful for the support that the United States government has given us in this fight for the democratic recovery of Venezuela,” González said in statements to the press after the meeting.
González has indicated that his team is in contact with President-elect Donald Trump’s team, although he has not confirmed whether he will meet with the magnate in the next few hours. “Our relations are also going to be very close and very beneficial,” he added.
For his part, President Biden has reiterated that he supports “shared efforts to restore democracy in Venezuela” after “millions of Venezuelans bravely voted for change” in the “flawed” July elections in which González received a greater number of votes “by an insurmountable margin.”
“Both leaders agreed that there is nothing more essential to the success of democracy than respecting the will of the people, expressed through a transparent and accountable electoral process, and that González Urrutia’s campaign victory must be honored through a peaceful return to the democratic government”.
Both have also expressed their “deep concern about the unacceptable and indiscriminate use of repression” by the Government of President Nicolás Maduro against “peaceful protesters, activists for democracy and civil society,” as reported by the White House in a statement. .
Biden has also informed the opponent that he will “closely follow” the protests planned for January 9 in the country and has reminded the authorities that they must allow the Venezuelan people to “express their political opinions peacefully without fear of reprisals from the Army and the Police”.
The meeting takes place a few days before President Maduro takes office in Caracas on January 10 amid attempts by the opponent, who is in exile in Spain, to return to the capital of the Latin American country.
González met over the weekend with the presidents of Argentina, Javier Milei, and Uruguay, Luis Lacalle Pou. The Venezuelan opponent’s international tour includes Panama and the Dominican Republic, where he will also meet with senior officials.