On the occasion of the fifth Paris Peace Forum, the French president managed to bring together representatives of the Chavista government and the opposition.
Meeting at the Palais Brongniart, the fifth peace forum was an opportunity for President Emmanuel Macron to interfere in the conflict between the Venezuelan government and its opposition. Since 2019, the latter has presented Juan Guaidó as the interim president contesting the result of the presidential election which brought the Chavista Nicolás Maduro to power. It also rejects the legitimacy of the new parliament, which has a Chavista majority, and only recognizes the legitimacy of the deputies elected in 2015, the majority of whom belonged to the opposition. But the power of Nicolás Maduro is intact and the legitimacy of the parliament elected in 2015 is less and less defensible.
Emmanuel Macron managed to bring together Jorge Rodriguez, a strongman of the Chavista regime, and Gerardo Blyde, representative of the opposition, around the same table. To assist him in his attempt at mediation, he was accompanied by Colombian President Gustavo Petro, Argentinian President Alberto Fernandez and Norwegian Foreign Minister Anniken Huitfeldt.
Dialog process
The opposition and the government have tried on several occasions to engage in discussions to break the deadlock. The last ones were held in Mexico City but a year ago the Chavista government decided to withdraw from them, one of their designated negotiators, Alex Saab, having been extradited from Cape Verde to the United States on suspicion of financial embezzlement. The meeting which took place in Paris this Friday, November 11 at the initiative of the French president could relaunch the process of dialogue between the Chavista government and its opposition. A date for an early presidential election could even be announced in the coming days according to sources familiar with the matter.
The context is favourable: the South American political landscape has changed a lot lately. The left has come back in force in the region with the elections of Gabriel Boric to the presidency of Chile, of Gustavo Petro to that of Colombia and of Luis Inacio da Lula da Silva in Brazil. These new left-wing leaders can play a key role in changing Nicolás Maduro’s stance on a snap presidential election.
Moreover, the fossil fuel supply problems generated by the war in Ukraine have prompted Washington to approach Venezuela, which is suffering drastic sanctions from the United States and the European Union. This country has large oil and gas reserves that could compensate for Russian supplies.
Terrifying situation
At the end of the meeting, Gustavo Petro presented the objectives which, according to him, structured this meeting. Among them, a return to the negotiating table to end the Venezuelan political conflict. But also, the end of the sanctions of the United States and the European Union because they mainly affect the Venezuelan population. An amnesty for all Venezuelan political prisoners. And the guarantee of a lack of prosecution for the Chavista leaders. “ I demand the de-escalation of the political conflict, the return of Venezuela to the human rights system in Latin America, a general amnesty and an unblocking of the economy said the Colombian president.
Read the fileCrisis in Venezuela, the clash between Maduro and Guaido
Jose Rodriguez, representative of the Chavista government thanked Emmanuel Macron for his help so that “ the dialogue starts again soon “. Gerardo Blyde, the representative of the opposition estimated that “it is the government that left the negotiating table. Venezuelans want to elect their president as Gustavo Petro, Emmanuel Macro or Alberto Fernandez were elected”. The Venezuelan people have suffered a terrifying situation for several years. They are several millions to have fled the country. The government and the opposition must find common ground.