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The participation of Peruvian Foreign Minister Javier González Olaechea in the recent session of the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States (OAS), which rejected a resolution demanding the Nicolás Maduro regime to immediately publish the records of the presidential elections in Venezuela, has divided opinions across various sectors.
In an extraordinary session held in Washington, the Foreign Minister confronted the 11 countries that abstained from voting, including Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico, as well as the absence of five nations. “The principle of primacy of reality tells us that Edmundo González currently has 90% of the valid official ballot counts in his favor. Mr. Maduro will not be able to show his victory,” he said in a heated speech, which prompted a warning from the Council President, Ronald Sanders.
Former Foreign Minister Manuel Rodríguez Cuadros considered this stance a diplomatic and political mistake. “You cannot recognize [a president] if the electoral process has not concluded. Maduro has been declared the winner without legal basis, but you do not combat illegality with the same criteria and arguments,” he said in a dialogue with Canal N. He added that “the pronouncements must be very measured and very aligned with the legality of this issue.”
Rodríguez Cuadros also highlighted that Peru has pending situations with Latin American countries such as Mexico, Colombia, and Bolivia, and criticized the Foreign Minister’s position for not helping to maintain the best relations. “Today we have a delicate relationship because we have over a million Venezuelans depending on us and the relations are broken. The Peruvian government has not managed to articulate with another country to handle Peru’s interests in Caracas,” he pointed out.
For his part, the Ombudsman, Josué Gutiérrez, described the Foreign Minister’s position as reckless. “I find it unserious any statement from any authority. Let the verification be done, let the records be opened, and then the pronouncement must be forceful if it comes from the Peruvian state. We must be very prudent, especially in foreign policy. Whatever his decision, it undoubtedly affects all Peruvians,” he maintained. “I ask the Foreign Minister for restraint, prudence. Our country is not an island; it is part of a broader international treatment,” he stated.
González Olaechea’s intervention received praise from congressman Alejandro Muñante (Renovación Popular), who noted that “the firm condemnation of the dictatorial regime is a source of admiration for the international community and pride for Peruvians,” while legislator Edward Málaga (Avanza País) considered the Foreign Minister’s intervention “forceful.”
Agustín Antonetti, an activist from Latin American Watch, deemed his words “impressive” and invoked listening to his “master class on electoral fraud in Venezuela.” The resolution concerning Caracas was supported by Argentina, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, the United States, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, the Dominican Republic, Suriname, and Uruguay.
Countries that abstained include Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Grenada, Honduras, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Saint Lucia. Dominica, Mexico, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, and Venezuela, which has been absent for a long time, did not participate in the session.
Maduro was proclaimed the winner of the elections by the National Electoral Council (CNE) with 50.2% of the votes. The opposition denounced fraud, and several countries questioned the validity of the official results that keep Chavismo in power.
The United States, Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Peru, and Uruguay have denounced that the dictator seeks to carry out the fraud, while Spain, aligned with the European Union, has refrained from making a statement until the full records of the elections are published to certify the results.