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https://globalnews.ca/news/4878808/trump-venezuela-president-juan-guaido/
Juan Guadio is the legitimate interim president of Venezeula.
That is the position of the Canadian government which on Wednesday, confirmed to Global News it will recognize the country’s opposition leader as interim president. That move comes as the Trump administration ratcheted up pressure on Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro on Wednesday, also recognizing Guadio as the interim president and signalled potential new sanctions against its vital oil sector.
Mass street protests are underway against Maduro across Venezuela.
Speaking on background, a Canadian official told Global News Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland will address the move in a statement expected this afternoon and that the Lima Group will have a statement out imminently also recognizing Guaido as interim president.
The Lima Group is made up of 12 countries including Canada that seek an end to the political crisis in Venezuela.
It was established in 2017 to call for free and fair elections, the release of political prisoners and a return to democracy.
The Canadian official said the decision to recognize Guadio was made as a whole by the Lima Group and that members recognizing Guaido expect him to call an election within 30 days.
While the United States is not a member, Trump issued a statement threatening to use all available economic and political tools to restore democracy in the country and calling Maduro “illegitimate.”
“I will continue to use the full weight of United States economic and diplomatic power to press for the restoration of Venezuelan democracy,” Trump said in a statement, encouraging other governments in the Western Hemisphere to also recognize Guaido.
The administration had been waiting to issue its announcement after Guaido had been sworn in as the country’s temporary president on Wednesday, people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Earlier this month, Canada and the Lima Group members condemned a a widely-derided election in May 2018 as lacking “legitimacy.”
In a Jan. 4, 2019, statement, Canada and the Lima Group warned they would not recognize the new presidential term of Maduro that had been set to begin on Jan. 10, 2019.
Maduro was sworn in anyway and calls began growing for Guadio to assume the presidency given the election was widely boycotted and was described by the U.S., Canada and others as fraudulent.
The 35-year-old Guaido has energized the opposition with a campaign to declare Maduro a usurper and has promised a transition to a new government in a nation suffering a hyperinflationary economic collapse.
Guaido, a newcomer on the national scene who was elected to head Congress on Jan. 5, had said earlier he was willing to replace Maduro if he had the support of the military, with the aim of then calling for free elections.
U.S. officials in recent days had stated openly that Maduro no longer had a legitimate claim on power.
The sources acknowledged that formal recognition of Guaido would be complicated by questions of how to deal with Venezuela’s U.S.-based diplomats and who would now control its bank accounts and other U.S. assets.
It was also unknown whether Guaido and the opposition-controlled Congress would now try to exert control over Citgo, the U.S. refining arm of Venezuela’s state-run oil company PDVSA.
uch a move could also backfire if Maduro used Guaido’s swearing-in and U.S. recognition of him as a pretext to take action such as detaining him.
Canada also plans to recognize Guaido, a Canadian government official said on Wednesday.
OIL SANCTIONS UNDER REVIEW
Adding to pressure on Maduro, multiple sources said the Trump administration could impose new U.S. sanctions on Venezuela’s vital oil sector as soon as this week if the political situation there deteriorates further.
U.S. officials are considering a range of potential measures, including restricting U.S. imports of Venezuelan oil or even a full ban, to punish Maduro’s government, but no final decisions have been made as Washington closely watches the street protests unfolding in the country, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Two other sources briefed on the matter said the U.S. administration had privately informed U.S. energy companies of its deliberations.
The administration’s decision on whether to go ahead could depend on how harshly Maduro cracks down on protesters and how he responds to Guaido’s swearing-in, several of the sources said.
Since late last year, the White House has also been considering whether to put Venezuela’s on the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism, U.S. officials have said.
The White House has been growing frustrated with existing sanctions on Venezuela which have so far spared oil exports, feeling they have not had the desired effect.
Cutting off Venezuela’s exports would choke off revenue to the Western Hemisphere’s only OPEC member-nation.
The United States has held off on broad, oil-related measures for now, mindful of the potential not only for deepening the suffering of the Venezuelan people but also the risk of causing problems for U.S. companies and consumers.
Juan Guadio is the legitimate interim president of Venezeula.
That is the position of the Canadian government which on Wednesday, confirmed to Global News it will recognize the country’s opposition leader as interim president. That move comes as the Trump administration ratcheted up pressure on Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro on Wednesday, also recognizing Guadio as the interim president and signalled potential new sanctions against its vital oil sector.
Mass street protests are underway against Maduro across Venezuela.
Speaking on background, a Canadian official told Global News Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland will address the move in a statement expected this afternoon and that the Lima Group will have a statement out imminently also recognizing Guaido as interim president.
The Lima Group is made up of 12 countries including Canada that seek an end to the political crisis in Venezuela.
It was established in 2017 to call for free and fair elections, the release of political prisoners and a return to democracy.
The Canadian official said the decision to recognize Guadio was made as a whole by the Lima Group and that members recognizing Guaido expect him to call an election within 30 days.
While the United States is not a member, Trump issued a statement threatening to use all available economic and political tools to restore democracy in the country and calling Maduro “illegitimate.”
“I will continue to use the full weight of United States economic and diplomatic power to press for the restoration of Venezuelan democracy,” Trump said in a statement, encouraging other governments in the Western Hemisphere to also recognize Guaido.
The administration had been waiting to issue its announcement after Guaido had been sworn in as the country’s temporary president on Wednesday, people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Earlier this month, Canada and the Lima Group members condemned a a widely-derided election in May 2018 as lacking “legitimacy.”
In a Jan. 4, 2019, statement, Canada and the Lima Group warned they would not recognize the new presidential term of Maduro that had been set to begin on Jan. 10, 2019.
Maduro was sworn in anyway and calls began growing for Guadio to assume the presidency given the election was widely boycotted and was described by the U.S., Canada and others as fraudulent.
The 35-year-old Guaido has energized the opposition with a campaign to declare Maduro a usurper and has promised a transition to a new government in a nation suffering a hyperinflationary economic collapse.
Guaido, a newcomer on the national scene who was elected to head Congress on Jan. 5, had said earlier he was willing to replace Maduro if he had the support of the military, with the aim of then calling for free elections.
U.S. officials in recent days had stated openly that Maduro no longer had a legitimate claim on power.
The sources acknowledged that formal recognition of Guaido would be complicated by questions of how to deal with Venezuela’s U.S.-based diplomats and who would now control its bank accounts and other U.S. assets.
It was also unknown whether Guaido and the opposition-controlled Congress would now try to exert control over Citgo, the U.S. refining arm of Venezuela’s state-run oil company PDVSA.
uch a move could also backfire if Maduro used Guaido’s swearing-in and U.S. recognition of him as a pretext to take action such as detaining him.
Canada also plans to recognize Guaido, a Canadian government official said on Wednesday.
OIL SANCTIONS UNDER REVIEW
Adding to pressure on Maduro, multiple sources said the Trump administration could impose new U.S. sanctions on Venezuela’s vital oil sector as soon as this week if the political situation there deteriorates further.
U.S. officials are considering a range of potential measures, including restricting U.S. imports of Venezuelan oil or even a full ban, to punish Maduro’s government, but no final decisions have been made as Washington closely watches the street protests unfolding in the country, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Two other sources briefed on the matter said the U.S. administration had privately informed U.S. energy companies of its deliberations.
The administration’s decision on whether to go ahead could depend on how harshly Maduro cracks down on protesters and how he responds to Guaido’s swearing-in, several of the sources said.
Since late last year, the White House has also been considering whether to put Venezuela’s on the U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism, U.S. officials have said.
The White House has been growing frustrated with existing sanctions on Venezuela which have so far spared oil exports, feeling they have not had the desired effect.
Cutting off Venezuela’s exports would choke off revenue to the Western Hemisphere’s only OPEC member-nation.
The United States has held off on broad, oil-related measures for now, mindful of the potential not only for deepening the suffering of the Venezuelan people but also the risk of causing problems for U.S. companies and consumers.
