Brazil, U.S. officials meet Venezuela opposition leaders

BRASÍLIA, Brazil – Brazilian and US officials met Venezuelan opposition leaders in Brasilia Thursday, January 17, to discuss the political crisis in the oil-rich country ruled by President Nicolas Maduro, Brazil’s foreign ministry said.

The ministry said in a statement the meetings were to “analyze the situation in Venezuela stemming from the illegitimacy of President Nicolas Maduro’s rule” and to show support for the leader of Venezuela’s opposition-controlled parliament, Juan Guaido.

“There was also the aim of discussing ideas for concrete action to restore democracy in Venezuela,” it added.

The foreign ministry branded Maduro’s regime “a mechanism of organized crime,” which it said was based on “generalized corruption, drug trafficking, trafficking in people, money laundering, and terrorism.”

The gathering was chaired by Brazilian Foreign Minister Ernesto Araujo and took place without figuring on official agendas and with no access for journalists.

Araujo followed up with a separate meeting with former members of Venezuela’s supreme court, one of whom, Miguel Angel Martin, also went on to hold a private meeting with President Jair Bolsonaro.

Among the Venezuelan opposition leaders participating were Julio Borges, the former head of parliament who lives in exile in Colombia, and Antonio Ledezma, a former Caracas mayor now based in Spain.

US embassy officials were present, although the mission was unable to confirm which because of a US government shutdown affecting some services, including media relations.

The foreign ministry said representatives from the “Lima Group,” a grouping of 14 countries in the Americas that views Maduro’s rule as anti-democratic, were also there. So too were representatives of the Organization of American States.

Isolating Venezuela

The declared intention to ratchet up pressure on Caracas comes as Maduro and members of his government are already under US and EU sanctions.

Bolsonaro has said his government will vigorously challenge Venezuela’s regime.

He has also said he wants much closer ties with the United States, which has been pushing for a more forceful regional campaign against Maduro.

Thursday’s meeting came a day after Bolsonaro hosted Argentine President Mauricio Macri and both leaders condemned Maduro’s “dictatorship.”

The Lima Group, the European Union and the United States view Maduro’s presidency as illegitimate after he took up a new mandate last week, following May 2018 elections branded fraudulent by the opposition.

Maduro and his government frequently accuse the United States of wanting to foment an uprising.

“Venezuela demands respect for its democracy,” Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza tweeted on Wednesday, January 16, denouncing US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and “other extremist voices looking to destabilize the country and incite violence.”

Maduro is widely blamed for Venezuela’s economic meltdown that sees the oil-reliant country wallowing in a fourth year of recession.

Crude production is at a 30-year low, while poverty is widespread and millions have fled the country. – Rappler.com