The rapprochements between the United States and Venezuela have promoted the return to the negotiations that began in Mexico in 2021 between the Government of Nicolás Maduro and the opposition represented by the Unitary Platform and that had been stalled for a year. The Executive will approve a return to the talks, according to the Venezuelan media. Cocuyo Effect and this newspaper was able to confirm. Since last year, envoys from Caracas and Washington began secret contacts in Doha that have become the main channel of dialogue with Maduro to reach agreements aimed at unblocking the prolonged Venezuelan political conflict.
The United States is increasing pressure to move towards free and fair presidential elections, for which a date has not yet been set, but other pieces have moved, giving indications that some understandings have been reached. This week, Vice President Delcy Rodríguez published photos of her meeting with the Emir of the State of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, in Doha, as evidence of the meetings in which the Arab country is host. Last week the United States and Venezuela, each from their own narratives, announced the resumption of flights to Caracas to deport undocumented Venezuelan migrants. One spoke of expulsion and the other of repatriation. Chavismo, for its part, has insistently pushed for the lifting of the sectoral and individual sanctions maintained by the Treasury Department against PDVSA that have made it difficult for the country to market its crude oil and consequently have hit its finances. But it is not clear, as Reuters has warned, whether a relaxation of sanctions would be immediate upon returning to negotiations in Mexico or would have to wait for greater gestures from the Chavista Government to come to fruition.
Chavismo needs financing to improve its situation ahead of the presidential elections, at a time when the economy is shrinking again after the discreet signs of life it gave last year. The disease of inflation will again guarantee a triple-digit close for 2023 and growth projections have been lowered. On the street, people’s biggest concern continues to be bringing food home, and daily workers and neighbors protest the precariousness of salaries and public services in a country where power outages, lack of water and hunger.
We thank His Royal Highness, Emir of the State of Qatar, @TamimBinHamad, for welcoming us during our stay in your country. We present greetings from the President. @NicolasMaduro and of the Venezuelan people. In this friendly meeting we ratified our intention to strengthen the ties of… pic.twitter.com/NhsPpzKzEn
— Delcy Rodríguez (@delcyrodriguezv) October 9, 2023
The United States has been granting some licenses, such as those given to Chevron and the European companies Eni and Repsol, to sell Venezuelan crude oil in order to settle debts that the state oil company has with foreign companies. Reuters assures that progress has been made in these conversations to extend this same scheme to other companies that have requested these exceptions from the US authorities. According to the agency, one of the companies to receive the permits would be the French Maurel & Prom.
On the political and social front, progress has been almost imperceptible. In November of last year, the two parties signed an agreement in Mexico for the use of Venezuelan money frozen in accounts abroad for humanitarian needs in the country, through a fund administered by the United Nations that has not been materialized. For two years, the opposition has insisted on the release of prisoners and political activists – more than 200 – and guarantees for the presidential elections scheduled for 2024, such as revoking the disqualifications of candidates.
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This point took on another dimension this week, when primary candidate Henrique Capriles decided to resign, recognizing his own disqualification as an insurmountable obstacle, and asked to build a “viable” candidacy to face Maduro in 2024. It is María Corina Machado, barely disqualified. entered the primary race, the one that surpasses the other candidates by a wide margin and the one that will surely reach the greatest number of votes on October 22, if the votes to which, two weeks after completion, are still held, are held. covers a blanket of uncertainty.
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