Written in favor of the release of Alex Saab, in Caracas.YURI CORTEZ / AFP
After years in the shadows, Alex Saab is now a geopolitical affair. Russia has warned this Friday that the extradition of the Colombian businessman, identified by the United States as an alleged front man of Nicolás Maduro and with charges of money laundering linked to the Venezuelan Government, represents a "serious threat" to the efforts of the Government and the opposition to find Exits to the Venezuelan crisis in the negotiations that began less than a month ago in Mexico. "We consider the criminal prosecution of Alex Saab, who has diplomatic status and was carrying out a humanitarian mission, politically motivated," the statement said.
It is not Russia's first defense of Saab, who in June 2020 was detained in Cape Verde when he made a stop in his private plane to refuel. This statement, however, is made while it is the accompanying country, together with the Netherlands, of the new attempt at dialogue sponsored by the Kingdom of Norway between Chavismo and the opposition. "Some actions by external actors generate concern, since they create risks of undermining the fragile trust achieved between the parties," the text adds. “Now, when important issues are discussed there in a substantive way, and that to one degree or another affect US policy towards Venezuela, Washington is, in fact, trying to use Alex Saab as an additional lever of pressure on the Venezuelan Government.We see this as a serious threat to the efforts of the parties to find mutually acceptable avenues for the future development of this country. "
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Just three days ago, the same day that the decision of the highest court of Cape Verde to authorize the delivery of Saab to the United States was known, after a lengthy legal process, Russia had issued another statement in which it celebrated the start of the negotiations in Mexico and assured that he would not make statements that could interfere in the talks “We are not going to give an appreciation to the course of the negotiations, since the participants themselves asked us to do so.
At the same time, we highlight progress in the search for points of agreement, ”says the text of the Moscow spokeswoman, María Zajárova.
Now, the fixed position of Moscow conditions the negotiations.
The Venezuelan government has not reacted to the new decision on Saab, after having exercised an intense media and international campaign in his defense by declaring him a special and diplomatic agent after his arrest in the African island nation. The new chancellor, Félix Plasencia, has not issued a statement on the matter. But the approval of Saab's extradition and the capture this week of Hugo Carvajal, former head of the secret services of Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro, represent a severe blow from Washington to Caracas and its circle of allies. A year ago, when representatives of the Government and Juan Guaidó were meeting in Barbados trying to reach agreements,Maduro decided to withdraw in response to the freezing of Venezuela's assets abroad that the Trump Administration decided as part of the strategy to pressure Chavismo. It remains to be seen how the Chavista delegation, led by Jorge Rodríguez, who has an appointment for a new meeting in two weeks in Mexico, will react.
Until now, the new negotiations have reached a consensus on the agenda of the discussions that ranges from the electoral schedule and political rights, to issues of coexistence, the justice system, the recovery of the economy, attention to the humanitarian crisis and, that Maduro has insisted the most, the lifting of sanctions and the recovery of assets abroad. The last session resulted in two agreements related to the creation of a new technical vaccination table to guarantee access to immunizations against COVID for Venezuelans. They also included among the agreements, although it is not an issue on the agenda nor is it in disagreement between the parties, a statement in defense of the Essequibo, the historical controversy between Venezuela and Guyana over the possession of that territory.
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