On Monday 25 June, the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Luxembourg decided to put 11 Venezuelan individuals holding official positions under restrictive measures. The individuals listed are responsible for human rights violations and for undermining the rule of law in Venezuela. The measures include a travel ban and an assets freeze.
The 11 individuals include Tareck Zaidan El-Aissami Maddah (Vice President of Economy and Minister for National Industry and Production), Jesús Rafael Suárez Chourio (General Commander of the Bolivarian Army), Delcy Eloína Rodríguez Gómez (Vice President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela), Elías José Jaua Milano (Minister of Popular Power for Education), Katherine Nayarith Harrington Padrón (Deputy Prosecutor General), as well as several members of the National Electoral Council.
The decision is the EU response that was wanted by the European foreign affairs ministers after they noted, at the end of May, that the presidential and local elections – which notably resulted in the re-election of President Nicolás Maduro – were not free or fair (see EUROPE 12028).
Back in January, the EU put seven Venezuelan leaders under restrictive measures, including the minister of the interior (see EUROPE 11944).
European Parliament missions to Venezuelan border. A group of five MEPs led by Agustín Díaz de Mera (EPP, Spain) will be in Colombia in the city of Cúcuta on the border with Venezuela, and another group of two MEPs, led by Francisco Assis (S&D, Portugal), will be in Brazil, in Boa Vista, a city close to the border with Venezuela, from Monday 25 June to Friday 29 June (see EUROPE 12035).
The MEPs' objective is to better understand the humanitarian situation on the ground, and they will therefore meet national and regional authorities, as well as non-governmental organisations.
Over 2 million Venezuelans have left their country since 2005. These include 800,000 people who have left for Colombia and 50,000 for Brazil. According to the United Nations, over 60% of them are in an irregular situation in their host country.
According to the 2017 report from the European Asylum Support Office, asylum applications to the EU from Venezuelans tripled in 2017 in relation to 2016 – rising from 4,705 applications in 2016 to 12,020 in 2017. This is the biggest increase that has been observed. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)