Venezuela: Joe Biden's government rejected any possible contact with Nicolás Maduro, calling him a 'dictator'

02/04/2021 2:18 PM

• Clarín.com

• World

Updated 02/04/2021 2:22 PM

The United States Government maintains that the President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro,

is a "dictator"

and, therefore, rules out that there may be a "direct contact" with his Administration in the short term, among other reasons because it considers that the opponent Juan Guaidó he is the "interim president" of the country.

The United States was the first country to recognize Guaidó as the 'in charge' president of Venezuela in January 2019 and, despite the arrival of Joe Biden to the White House, it will continue in the same line.

Thus, it does not consider the parliamentary elections called by Chavismo in December valid either, and maintains that Guaidó and his National Assembly -

"the last remaining democratic institution

" - are still the legitimate powers.

The spokesman for the US State Department, Ned Price, pointed to Maduro's "repression, corruption and mismanagement" as responsible "for one of the most serious humanitarian crises that the" western hemisphere has seen, and that Washington continues to defend one

" peaceful democratic transition "

in Venezuela.

This transition goes through "free and fair presidential and parliamentary elections," "to help Venezuelans rebuild their lives and their country," in Price's words.

"Venezuelans have the right to democracy and a government that promotes and defends it," he added at a press conference.

Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó remains the United States' favorite.

Photo EFE

According to Price, Biden has promised protection for the fled Venezuelans and sanctions against the Chavista leaders "implicated in corruption and human rights abuses," which invites us to rule out, at least for now,

that there may be direct contacts with the Venezuelan authorities.

Maduro has raised this possibility after the presidential change in the United States, but the State Department stressed that for now the strategy will continue to be to work together with "allies", both in the Americas and in Europe.

In this sense, Price has cited forums such as the Organization of American States (OAS) or the Lima Group.

The position of the United States differs from that of the European Union, which chooses to speak of Guaidó as a "privileged interlocutor" and to leave any additional consideration in the hands of each of the member states.

Illegitimate with support

In January 2019,

Trump declared Maduro illegitimate

and said he should leave, a proposition backed by more than fifty countries, most of them Latin American and European.

But despite strong diplomatic pressure and a battery of US sanctions, Maduro has remained in power

with support from the military, Russia, China, Cuba and Iran.

Among the guiding principles of Biden's policy towards Venezuela, Price mentioned the commitment to grant Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to citizens of Venezuela who are in the United States due to the crisis in their country,

which will allow them reside and work legally.

At least 200,000 Venezuelans live in the United States

under threat of arrest and deportation, according to estimates by the Congressional Budget Office.

Despite his bellicose rhetoric toward Maduro and his hints of a possible military intervention to force his departure, Trump was reluctant to grant this immigration status to Venezuelans, fearing that it would become a path to citizenship for many undocumented immigrants.

But hours before leaving the White House,

Trump gave them the benefit of Deferred Forced Departure

(DED)

for 18 months

, a gesture seen as a last-minute gift to the Venezuelan-born electorate in Florida that helped him win that crucial status in the November presidential elections.

Biden promised during the electoral campaign to grant TPS to Venezuelans, accusing Trump of failing them and deporting them "without mercy."

During the press conference, Price highlighted the presence of Venezuelan journalist Gaby Perozo from VPITV, a Miami-based digital news channel that on January 10 announced the cessation of its operations in Venezuela

after the government seized

its equipment. transmission, cameras and computers.

"Maduro and his supporters have tried to silence journalists like you who report the truth," the State Department spokesman said.

"We condemn the censorship

, we condemn the blocking, harassment and other tactics to suppress the voices of independent media, including the recent closure of VPITV and the harassment of six other independent Venezuelan media," he added.

Source: Europa Press, AFP and EFE

PB

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