Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron during the COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh (Egypt) on November 7, 2022 (Image courtesy of the Venezuelan Presidency). HANDOUT / AFP
France intends to play mediator to try to unblock political dialogue between Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his political opponents. As part of the Paris Peace Forum, on Friday November 11, Emmanuel Macron was due to receive Mr Maduro’s special envoy, Jorge Rodriguez, President of the National Assembly, and the opposition spokesman, Gerardo Blyde, in the presence of Colombian President Gustavo Petro and his Argentine counterpart Alberto Fernández.
The meeting is scheduled for late afternoon at the Palais Brongniart, where the fifth edition of this Elysée-inspired international conference to reflect on global governance is taking place. The French President, explains his entourage, “is trying to support the resumption of a dialogue in order to have political guarantees as soon as possible, which will then lead to fair and transparent elections”.
The meeting was preceded on Tuesday by a side-by-side between Emmanuel Macron and his Venezuelan counterpart Nicolas Maduro in the corridors of the COP27 organized in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. An exchange filmed by Venezuelan broadcaster Telesur and whose images were broadcast on a continuous loop by the country’s public television, making netizens happy or angered by Paris’ diplomatic U-turn. Mr Macron bestowed the title of “President” on Mr Maduro after France failed to recognize his controversial re-election in 2018.
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When asked if he would be visiting Venezuela soon, Emmanuel Macron did not respond to his counterpart’s warm invitation. He wanted to talk to him “a little longer” and “start useful bilateral work for the country and the region”. Using the Caribbean “du”, Nicolas Maduro informed Mr Macron that Jorge Rodriguez would attend the Paris meeting: “You can speak to him with confidence, with absolute confidence, I assure you. “France must play a positive role,” concluded Nicolas Maduro in a particularly affable manner.
The conversation did not go unnoticed. Following in Washington’s footsteps, Paris had refused to recognize the legitimacy of Nicolas Maduro’s second term and recognized opponent Juan Guaido as the country’s legitimate president. The aim was to force Nicolas Maduro to resign. France and the European Union then imposed a series of sanctions on figures close to the regime.
“Political Reorganization”
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