Venezuela President Maduro, "Pursuing Dialogue with Opposition"... August Meeting Possible

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suhwan] Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has expressed his willingness to resume dialogue with the opposition to resolve the political crisis. As prospects for a ruling and opposition meeting become more realistic, attention is focused on whether the political crisis in Venezuela can be resolved.

According to major foreign media on the 25th (local time), President Maduro said in an interview with the state-run Telesur the day before, "I am ready to go to Mexico," and added, "The government and opposition delegations hope to open a dialogue table in Mexico in August with the support of Norway and other governments."

Earlier, Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaid? also stated in a recent local broadcast interview, "We are ready to reach an agreement (with the government) as a democratic alternative to find a solution to the conflict."

With both ruling and opposition leaders expressing their willingness to resume talks, there is growing speculation that an 'August meeting' is highly likely.

However, aside from Mexico being mentioned as a potential venue, no specific negotiation schedule has been set. The agenda for the talks is also reported to be undecided at this time.

The opposition side is said to want to agree on a concrete schedule for holding fair presidential and general elections. On the other hand, the Maduro administration is reportedly focusing on lifting sanctions imposed by the United States on the financial and oil sectors during this ruling-opposition meeting.

Previously, President Maduro stated that he would engage in dialogue only if the sanctions imposed by the United States and the European Union (EU) on the Venezuelan regime were lifted. In response, Western countries have made the implementation of fair elections a prerequisite for lifting sanctions.

The severe political turmoil in Venezuela has continued since the 2018 presidential election.

The opposition claimed that President Maduro's successful re-election at that time was fraudulent. Then, in 2019, National Assembly Speaker Guaid? declared himself president, resulting in the unprecedented situation of two presidents in one country.

Subsequently, Western countries including the United States recognized Guaid? as the leader of Venezuela, and the United States and the EU imposed sanctions against the Maduro regime.

The ruling and opposition parties began talks to resolve the political crisis under Norway's mediation, but negotiations broke down in August 2019 when President Maduro opposed the expansion of U.S. sanctions.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.