Spanish
The European Union (EU) stated this Tuesday that it will maintain contacts with the Government of Delcy Rodríguez, as it had been doing with Venezuelan authorities that it did not consider legitimate, with the aim of "safeguarding its interests and defending its principles."
"What we will do in this case is what we have done so far, even though we have not recognized the legitimacy of President (deposed by the United States, Nicolás) Maduro, and the same in the case of Delcy Rodríguez," now the new acting president of Venezuela, indicated community spokesperson Anitta Hipper during the daily press conference of the European Commission.
The spokesperson for the head of EU diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, stressed that the bloc will maintain "a specific commitment with the Venezuelan authorities to safeguard our own interests and defend our own principles."
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He recalled that, for the EU, the Venezuelan authorities "derive their mandate from an electoral process that did not respect the will of the people in favor of democratic change" in the July 28, 2024 elections. In that sense, he insisted that "the future of Venezuela must be configured precisely through an inclusive dialogue that leads to a democratic transition and, therefore, includes all actors committed to democracy, including the figures of democratically elected opposition leaders." Asked if the EU plans to review the restrictive measures it imposed against Rodríguez, which include a ban on entering the community territory, Hipper said that "regarding the sanctions, all decisions are made unanimously among our member states, and I cannot anticipate or prejudge anything about this work." On Sunday, Kallas issued a statement on behalf of 26 of the 27 member states (all but Hungary), in which he called for "calm and moderation from all actors, in order to avoid escalation and ensure a peaceful solution to the crisis." He also asked to respect the principles of international law and the Charter of the United Nations. "The members of the UN Security Council have a special responsibility to defend those principles, as a pillar of the international security architecture," he added without mentioning the United States. Kallas also referred in that statement to Maduro's "lack of legitimacy as a democratically elected president" and recalled that the EU has advocated for a "peaceful transition towards democracy in the country, led by Venezuela and respectful of its sovereignty", so that "the right of the Venezuelan people to decide their future" is respected. Delcy Rodríguez opened on Monday a new political chapter in the almost 26 years of Chavismo's history by becoming, by order of the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ), the first woman in the history of Venezuela to head the Executive two days after the US military attack on Venezuela to arrest Maduro. Maduro, captured in Caracas by U.S. special forces, appeared on Monday alongside his wife, Cilia Flores, before a federal court in New York and both pleaded not guilty to all drug trafficking charges with which the Donald Trump administration intends to justify the bombings, his capture and subsequent transfer to the U.S.
