The United States reaffirmed this Tuesday its position of reimposing sanctions on Venezuela if the government of Nicolás Maduro does not comply with the Barbados Agreement. this week.
Next Thursday, the relief of sanctions on Venezuelan oil and gas expires, granted by Washington last October as an incentive for President Nicolás Maduro to comply with the agreements agreed with the democratic opposition.
“We are two days away from April 18. We have made it very clear that if Maduro and his representatives do not fully implement the Barbados Accords, we would reimpose sanctions. What I would say is: be attentive,” stated Matthew Miller, spokesperson for the State Department, in a press conference, quoted by the EFE news agency.
Miller mentioned that some aspects of the agreements have been fulfilled, such as the establishment of an electoral calendar and the invitation to international observation missions, but he also highlighted that opposition candidates have been “blocked.”
Last week’s meeting between US and Venezuelan officials in Mexico City was not detailed by the spokesperson, who assured that Joe Biden’s administration has communicated “directly to Maduro and his representatives” its expectation of compliance with the Barbados Agreement.
One of the conditions for not reimposing sanctions was that all opposition candidates could participate in the elections. However, María Corina Machado, the main opposition candidate, remains disqualified for the July 28 elections.
In addition, the electoral authorities prevented the registration of his replacement, Corina Yoris, which has generated criticism even from allies of Nicolás Maduro, such as Colombia and Brazil.
Joe Biden, “if you want, I want”
The Venezuelan president emphasized on Monday, amid tensions over the possible reestablishment of sanctions, the country’s determination to continue its economic course, regardless of the licenses granted by the United States.
“We are going to continue, with license, without license, we are not a gringo colony. Venezuela is going to continue its economic march. “No one is going to stop us, gentlemen gringos,” Maduro stated during his weekly television program.
He criticized the “blackmail tactics and threats” of the US administration with the license, which has allowed Venezuela to trade its crude oil without restrictions in the last six months. He considered these actions as “colonialist” attempts to protect the Venezuelan oil industry.
“We have taken our own economic model, we do not depend on you, gringos. “They want to do harm to harm the economy because we are in elections, in an electoral campaign,” added the official.
Despite the tension, he highlighted the “will” for dialogue with the United States government and revealed that there was a video conference between both governments on Monday. “I will never close the doors of dialogue with them,” he stated, after sending the message to Biden: “if you want, I want, if you don’t want, I don’t want.”
Keep reading:
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