The Diplomat
The European Union maintains doubts about lifting sanctions against Venezuela as requested by Spain at a time when the presidential candidacy of opposition leader María Corina Machado, disqualified and whose election in the primaries organized by the opposition is being investigated by the Venezuelan Attorney General’s Office, is not guaranteed.
Last October 23, the acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, proposed to his EU counterparts the revision of the European sanctions against Venezuela “in line with the recent US decisions in that sense” and taking into account the recent agreement between the opposition and the regime of Nicolás Maduro for the holding of presidential elections in 2024.
European sources quoted by the Europa Press agency indicated yesterday that the matter was addressed “briefly” by Albares at last Monday’s Foreign Affairs Council and that the EU High Representative for Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell, committed to have a “more structured debate with more substance” on the sanctions regime on Venezuela.
However, the same sources warned that within the EU it is not clear how to proceed, although European diplomacy has shown its willingness to ease sanctions against Caracas if it reached agreements with the opposition for free and fair elections.
“In the meantime, we will continue to support the transparent and fair process, and from that point of view, it is important to identify a leader who can run now,” the sources said, referring to the situation of Machado, elected as a unity candidate in the opposition primaries with more than 90 percent of the vote. Machado is currently disqualified for public office and the Venezuelan Attorney General’s Office is investigating the primary process for alleged fraud, leaving in the air whether she could face Nicolás Maduro in the elections of the second semester of 2024.
