The Diplomat
The Venezuelan Foreign Minister, Jorge Arreaza, said yesterday that his country wants to maintain “constructive and respectful” relations with Spain, after receiving in Caracas the State Secretary for Foreign Affairs and for Ibero-America and the Caribbean, Cristina Gallach.
Gallach arrived in the Venezuelan capital on Sunday afternoon – where she was received by the Venezuelan Vice-Minister for Europe, Yvan Gil – for a visit that will last until today, during which, according to Venezuelan sources, she is expected to be received by the Vice-President of the Government, Delcy Rodríguez.
The Spanish government last night did not provide any information on the State Secretary’s contacts, beyond the note released on Sunday, in which it said that she would meet with the main Venezuelan actors: representatives of Nicolás Maduro’s government, the democratic opposition, civil society, academia, businesses and NGOs.
Foreign Minister Arancha González Laya did not specify anything more when she was asked at a press conference with her Algerian counterpart, Sabri Boukadoum, and everything suggests that she wants to wait to see how the visit develops before issuing a statement. Less than a month ago, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro ordered his foreign minister to conduct a thorough review of relations with Spain.
The only information provided yesterday was that released by the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry in a brief press release and on Arreaza’s Twitter account. These stated that the minister had held “a cordial meeting” with the State Secretary, and expressed Venezuela’s willingness to “maintain constructive and respectful relations” with the Spanish government.
