Venezuela is “
totally ready
” to normalize its relations with the United States, which were severed in 2019, President Nicolás Maduro said on Sunday January 1.
"
Venezuela is ready, totally ready, to move towards a process of normalization of diplomatic, consular, political relations, with this government of the United States and with those who may come next
," Nicolás Maduro said in an interview. with the French journalist Ignacio Ramonet and the Telesur channel, broadcast by Venezuelan public television.
The government of Nicolás Maduro had broken with the United States in 2019, the year in which the administration of Donald Trump had recognized the opponent Juan Guaidó as interim president of Venezuela.
In an attempt to oust Nicolás Maduro from power, Washington had adopted a battery of sanctions against Caracas, including an embargo on Venezuelan oil.
An election deemed fraudulent
Even if the current president Joe Biden continues to formally not recognize Nicolás Maduro as president of Venezuela, deeming his election in 2018 fraudulent, the oil crisis caused by the war in Ukraine has led to a warming of relations.
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The White House sent emissaries to Caracas in 2022 to negotiate, and eased the sanctions against Venezuela after a breakthrough in the negotiations between power and opposition, in particular allowing the oil giant Chevron to operate in the Latin American country during the next six months.
“
We are ready for dialogues at the highest level, for relationships of respect, and I hope that a ray of light will reach this United States of North America so that they turn the page, leave aside this extremist policy, and arrive at more pragmatic policies vis-à-vis Venezuela
," said Nicolás Maduro.
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The Venezuelan president also declared that “
things are progressing well
” with the European Union and that a “
permanent dialogue
” is taking place with the head of diplomacy of the twenty-seven, Josep Borrell.