Spain, France, Germany give Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro ultimatum

Spain, France and Germany on Saturday gave embattled Venezuelan
leader Nicolas Maduro an ultimatum, saying they would recognise
opposition leader Juan Guaido as president unless he calls
elections within eight days.

The ultimatum comes as international pressure mounts on the
Maduro regime to agree a new vote, with the United States, Canada
and major South American players already recognising Guaido, who
proclaimed himself acting president of Venezuela during massive
street rallies this week.

After four years of economic pain that has left Venezuelans
short of food and medicine and driven more than two million to
flee, Guaido is trying to oust Maduro following controversial
elections that saw the socialist leader sworn in for a second
term.

“If within eight days there are no fair, free and transparent
elections called in Venezuela, Spain will recognise Juan Guaido as
Venezuelan president” so that he himself can call such polls, Prime
Minister Pedro Sanchez said in a televised announcement.

French President Emmanuel Macron followed suit in a tweet,
saying “the Venezuelan people must be able to freely decide on
their future,” as did German government spokeswoman Martina
Fietz.

The coordinated announcements are the most explicit yet from EU
countries as the 28-member bloc struggles to draft a joint
statement with regards to its position on the crisis in
Venezuela.

– ‘Not looking to impose’ –

Spain had wanted the EU to take a tough line on Maduro by
calling for immediate elections, failing which the bloc as a whole
would recognise Guaido, the 35-year-old head of Venezuela’s
National Assembly.

But countries like Austria, Greece and Portugal are much more
reluctant.

In fact Greece’s ruling party Syriza has publicly backed Maduro,
with party secretary Panos Skourletis voicing “full support and
solidarity” to what to he called “the legal president.”

President Donald Trump’s administration has spearheaded the
international pressure on Maduro, who accuses Washington of being
behind an attempted “coup,” by declaring his regime
“illegitimate.”

On Saturday at a UN Security Council meeting US Secretary of
State Mike Pompeo will urge members to recognise Guaido as interim
president, the State Department said.

Washington’s support for Guaido led Maduro to close the US
embassy and consulates and break diplomatic ties.

US diplomats in Venezuela have until Saturday to leave the
country, but Washington has refused to fully comply fully with the
exit order.

Guaido is instead urging the US diplomats to stay and keep the
embassy’s doors open.

Maduro’s reelection last year was contested by the opposition
and criticised internationally — but he has until now retained the
loyalty of the powerful military.

Spain is closely linked to Venezuela, a former colony, as some
200,000 of its nationals live there.

Sanchez insisted Saturday that Spain is “not looking to impose
or remove governments in Venezuela, we want democracy and free
elections in Venezuela.”