The ruling party and the opposition of Venezuela announced this Monday that they will resume the dialogue table suspended for almost a year after differences between the parties.
This was announced by the Government of Norway, guarantor of the negotiation process, which reported that The first meeting is scheduled for this Tuesday, in Bridgetown (Barbados).
An opposition source also confirmed to EL TIEMPO the restart of the dialogues, which were resumed in 2022 after a year of the extradition of the Colombian-Venezuelan businessman, Álex Saab to the United States.
From November until now, the parties resumed the dialogue in a formal manner, as there were meetings even sponsored by Colombia and France. The main obstacle was no longer the imprisonment of Saab, but that in November the release of 3,000 million dollars was agreed and until today the return of those resources, which is Venezuelan money in banks in the United States and Europe, has not been finalized.
It had already been anticipated a few weeks ago that a return would be probable, especially because the United States has pressured the Government of Nicolás Maduro to return to dialogue in exchange for relaxing some sanctions and granting oil concessions.
(You may be interested: Will there be an agreement between Caracas and Washington before the opposition primaries?)
“The Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and the Unitary Platform of Venezuela have decided to resume the process of dialogue and negotiation, facilitated by Norway, with the objective of reaching a political agreement, as provided for in the Memorandum of Understanding signed in Mexico City on August 13, 2021. The meetings will begin on October 17, 2023 in Bridgetown, Barbados” says the statement published in X by Norway.
Among Venezuela’s demands is lifting economic sanctions on the country. While Joe Biden’s administration calls for political and human rights guarantees.
(Keep reading: Moscow and Caracas condemn Western sanctions and advocate ‘free development’)
The release of political prisoners and lifting disqualifications of opponents are also part of the US requests.
The restart of these conversations takes place a week before the opposition primaries, with María Corina Machado as the favorite, who is disabled. However, it is unlikely that her disqualification will be lifted.
We return to the negotiations with the firm willingness to achieve consensus that will allow us to continue with the agreed agenda for the well-being of millions of Venezuelans. https://t.co/DXoFDMo5Wn
— Stalin González (@stalin_gonzalez) October 16, 2023
This draws the attention of political scientist Leandro Linares, who considers that the opposition grouped in the so-called Unitary Platform and headed by Gerar Blyde, is also seeking that the group has legitimacy both inside and outside the country. This is not only because Maduro has achieved direct communication with Washington.
An important unknown is whether only a specific agreement will be signed or if there is a willingness to negotiate other issues of the 2021 memorandum of understanding.
“María Corina Machado by winning the primaries legitimizes her opposition leadership inside and outside the country… that is, Borges, Guevara, Blyde and company would lose all quality of representing the country in their disastrous secret, distant dialogues, agreeing on electoral business” says Linares.
For others there are questions that will be answered starting this Tuesday at the meeting in Barbados. “An important unknown is whether only a specific agreement will be signed or if there is a willingness to negotiate other issues of the 2021 memorandum of understanding,” said Mariano de Alba, advisor to the Crisis Group firm.
(Also read: How likely is it that the United States will hand over Juan Guaidó to Venezuela?)
The announcement also comes at a time when Washington appears to be getting closer to Caracas, having agreed a few weeks ago on the direct repatriation of undocumented Venezuelans, given a growing increase in migration in that country.
In that sense, the United States Department of Transportation issued this Monday an “emergency exception” to allow flights by US airlines to Venezuela to repatriate migrants.
Sources linked to the negotiation process in Barbados told EL TIEMPO that they will seek results in political matters, but not about this Sunday’s primaries, but about the 2024 presidential elections, so they will seek to set a date for the election and that International observation of voting is allowed. For his part, Maduro agreed this Monday that they expect political agreements between the parties and promised that Chavismo will provide electoral guarantees in the country.
The truth is that it is not the first time that the Government and the opposition have met in Barbados, since in 2019 during the political crisis that gave rise to the figure of the interim government, recognizing Juan Guaidó as interim president, that country hosted meetings.
ANA MARÍA RODRÍGUEZ BRAZÓN
TIME CORRESPONDENT
CARACAS
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