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The EU’s foreign ministers have agreed that they will not recognize the “democratic legitimacy” of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro following the country’s election last month, the bloc’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told a press conference on Thursday.
Venezuela’s Foreign Ministry has previously condemned the EU’s failure to respect the sovereignty and independence of the South American nation and warned that this could considerably affect diplomatic relations.
Maduro won 52% of the vote in a presidential election in July, securing himself a third term in office. The opposition, however, has claimed that the vote was rigged. Maduro’s main rival, Western-backed Edmundo Gonzalez, was officially recognized by the US as Venezuela’s president-elect earlier this month.
According to Borrell, who said that Gonzalez was invited to participate in the EU meeting, the ministers made their decision as Venezuela’s National Electoral Council (CNE) did not respond to its calls to provide credible data.
The CNE declared on July 28 that Maduro had officially won the country’s presidential election and ratified his victory.
Russia, China and Caracas’ regional allies have congratulated the incumbent on his victory. However, the Venezuelan opposition, most Latin American states and the G7 nations have refused to recognize the results, expressing “serious concerns” about the integrity of the electoral process.
“We cannot accept the legitimacy of Maduro as elected president,” Borrell told reporters in Brussels. “He will remain president, de facto … But we deny democratic legitimacy based on a result that cannot be verified,” the diplomat claimed, stressing that Thursday’s decision is a “strong statement” by the EU.
Euronews cited a diplomatic source as saying that there was no consensus among the EU ministers to recognize the electoral victory of Gonzales.
Caracas has opened a criminal investigation against Gonzales and other opposition leaders for inciting “insurrection” with false claims of electoral victory and calls for street unrest.
According to the government, more than 20 people have been killed and more than 190 injured in election-related riots, while over 2,400 people have been arrested.
Caracas has accused Washington of planning yet another coup in Venezuela. The US likewise refused to recognize the 2018 election and recognized lawmaker Juan Guaido as “interim president,” going so far as to confiscate Venezuelan gold and other assets for his benefit. The Venezuelan opposition voted to dissolve his “interim government” in December 2022, after which Guaido faded into obscurity.