LIMA, Jan 7 (NNN-MERCOPRESS) — The Lima Group, a regional bloc comprised mostly of Latin American nations, said that it does not “recognize the legitimacy or legality of the National Assembly installed on January 5” in Venezuela.
“This illegitimate National Assembly is the product of the fraudulent elections of December 6, 2020, organized by the illegitimate regime of Nicolás Maduro,” the Lima Group said in a statement.
On Tuesday Nicolas Maduro’s allies took over Venezuela’s National Assembly, as part of a consolidation of power that increases the vulnerability of his opponents. Diosdado Cabello, the vice president of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela, leads the ruling party bloc.
Jorge Rodriguez, the former communication and information minister, took over Juan Guaido’s position as full-seat deputy.
“There are crimes that must be paid,” Rodriguez said about the outgoing legislators.
Jose Gregorio Correa, an outgoing legislator, delivered a speech in the National Assembly chambers. He stood in front of the new 277 legislators. There are 253 members — including 219 members of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela — who belong to a left-wing electoral alliance.
Most of Maduro’s opposition boycotted the Dec 6 elections. Correa said the low voter turnout should serve as a sign to the new legislators that they need to be more inclusive.
“80% of Venezuela did not vote for you and today you occupy 90% of the seats,” Correa said in Spanish.
Maduro, who was reelected in 2018, controls every branch of government. He controls the military and the judicial branch. He also has the support of China, Russia, Turkey, Iran, Cuba, Nicaragua and Bolivia.
Juan Guaido, 37, had led the National Assembly since 2015, and diplomats from the United States and the European Union, and dozens of allies have recognized him as Venezuela’s interim president since 2019.
Guaido said on Tuesday that there were armed men outside of his home. Despite the pressure, he said he is determined to continue to work with other members of the opposition to protect the interests of Venezuelans.
Meanwhile, in MOSCOW Russia’s Foreign Affairs Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova announced that her country will cooperate closely with the new National Assembly of Venezuela.
“We confirm our readiness to cooperate closely with Venezuela, its people, and legitimate authorities. We will keep on strengthening our strategic partnership which has been developing in a variety of fields of mutual interest,” she said.
Zakharova highlighted that the new National Assembly’s leaders have announced that they will begin a “broad dialogue process between all the country’s political forces, including those that are not represented in Parliament.”
Despite this good disposition, attempts to destabilize Venezuela continue to be promoted by “radical forces” whose actions prove to be “a gesture of despair.”
“Those who try to plunge the country into chaos through terrorist attacks and bloodshed obstruct the solutions through dialogue to the crisis. They are betting on a deepening split in the Venezuelan society. We are convinced that this path has no future,” Zakharova stressed.
Separately, the European Union avoided referring to the opposition politician Juan Guaido as Venezuela’s “acting president” once the mandate of the National Assembly over which he presided expired on Tuesday.
“Venezuela urgently needs a political solution to end the current impasse through an inclusive process of dialogue and negotiation leading to credible, inclusive, and democratic processes,” said Josep Borrell, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy in BRUSSELS.
He added that the EU will maintain its engagement with all Venezuelan political and social actors, including “Juan Guaido and other representatives of the outgoing National Assembly elected in 2015.”
