The Government has no intention of recognising Edmundo González as the elected president of Venezuela, as the PP is proposing and will probably be approved today by Congress – with the votes in favour of the PNV – but not because it does not believe that he is the legitimate winner of the elections, but because it is involved in another, more fundamental operation with its European partners and some very important countries in Latin America such as Brazil and Colombia that are looking for a way for Nicolás Maduro to leave power and allow a negotiated exit. From China, where he spoke for the first time with microphones about this issue that has become the centre of national debate at the end of a three-day trip, Sánchez has been especially clear. He has not spoken openly about Maduro’s departure from power, but from his words it was clear that this is what is being attempted to negotiate. “The Government of Spain has asked for the publication of the minutes of the elections in Venezuela. “We do not recognise Maduro’s victory and we are working for unity within the European Union that will allow for a margin of mediation between now and the end of the year so that we can find a solution that conveys the democratic will of the Venezuelan people expressed at the polls,” said Sánchez.
The end of the year deadline is relevant because the new president is due to take office in January. Until then, according to various government sources, there is no point in recognising González because the priority is to negotiate with the Maduro regime so that he admits defeat and leaves power. If he does not do so before January, the time will come to make a decision, but there are many actors involved at all levels to try and that is the consensus within the European Union and to which Sánchez referred.
That is why the Executive rejects the idea of the opposition – and of the PNV – to recognise González now, because it believes that it is a useless and hasty act. In the EU there is also a lot of reluctance to take that step after the failure of the operation, led then by Spain, to recognise Juan Guaidó as president in charge, something that had no real effect. Sánchez has taken the opportunity to criticise the attitude of the PP with this matter: “the opposition is doing what it always does, that is to say no to everything the Government does, whatever it may be. If we asylum because we asylum, if we do not asylum because we do not asylum. If a person asks for asylum and we say no, what would have been the justified reaction in this case of the opposition and of the whole of Spanish society? Asylum is still a gesture of humanity towards people who are suffering persecution and repression”, he concluded.
Sánchez ends his three-day trip to China convinced that he has managed to avoid a trade war with the EU that could seriously harm Spain, as Beijing threatens to impose tariffs on Spanish pork in retaliation for the tariffs that the EU wants to impose on Chinese electric cars. At the end of the trip, Sánchez went very far and said that Spain is rethinking its position on this issue – it voted in June in favour of tariffs on Chinese cars – and all European partners should do so. “All EU members and the Commission have to reconsider our position. We do not need another trade war. We have to seek an agreement between the European Commission and China within the framework of the WTO. We are all reconsidering our position,” Sánchez said. “As for the pork sector, we have expressed our surprise to the Chinese authorities that potential actions have been involved in a sector that has nothing to do with the automotive industry. The Chinese government is very aware of the value of the Spanish pork sector. Negotiations remain open. The pig sector can rest assured that we are defending its interests,” he insisted.
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