On a trip to Colombia, where he took part, on Tuesday, in an international meeting on the political crisis in Venezuela organised at the initiative of the left-wing president Gustavo Petro, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, said, on Wednesday 25 April, that he did not rule out sending a new EU mission to observe the Venezuelan presidential elections in 2024.
The aim is that the next presidential elections in Venezuela can be described as “fair, transparent and inclusive”, he said in Bogotá. He hoped “to be able to send another election observation mission, because that will mean that our recommendations have been taken into account”, referring to the 23 recommendations of the mission that the EU sent at the end of 2021 to observe local and regional elections in Venezuela (see EUROPE 12896/11).
According to him, “it was not a question of recognising the regime, but of validating an electoral process”, that allowed the participation of the political opposition led at the time by Juan Guaidó.
Mr Borrell also reiterated that the holding of democratic elections in Venezuela should go “in sync” with the review of sanctions against the Maduro regime. This position had already been expressed at the end of 2022 to facilitate discussions in Mexico between the Venezuelan government and the political opposition, discussions which have now stalled (see EUROPE 13072/16).
After re-establishing diplomatic relations between his country and Venezuela, the Colombian president has launched several initiatives to try to find a way out of the Venezuelan crisis. Caracas is demanding the lifting of sanctions, particularly US ones, against the country.
Colombia. In terms of bilateral relations between the EU and Bogotá, Mr Borrell said that, thanks to the peace process launched in 2016, the political and security situation in Colombia had radically improved. He promised that the EU, through its special envoy Eamon Gilmore, would continue to “accompany” the ongoing negotiations between the Colombian authorities and FARC dissident organisations.
The High Representative also announced a new European financial package, totalling €26.5 million, including €10 million to help the 3 million Venezuelan refugees in Colombia, and €10 million to combat deforestation. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)