PRESS STATEMENT
MORGAN ORTAGUS, DEPARTMENT SPOKESPERSON
The suspension of the Norway-sponsored talks between Venezuela’s interim government and the former Maduro regime reflects the refusal of the regime to negotiate in good faith. Once again, the regime sees negotiations as a delaying tactic and has subverted good-faith efforts to find a peaceful political solution.
The former Maduro regime has sabotaged the negotiations hosted by Norway, refusing to engage seriously on a return to democracy in Venezuela. It has now announced a plan designed to sabotage the National Assembly, the last democratic institution left in Venezuela. Maduro and his cronies lured a small fringe group of politicians to engage in “so called talks” and misrepresented them as speaking for the democratic opposition. The United States continues to support Juan Guaido, the President of the National Assembly and the legitimate Interim President of Venezuela. Any serious negotiations must be between the former regime and Interim President Guaido. As we have said repeatedly, U.S. sanctions will not be lifted until Maduro is gone.
While Oslo negotiations were ongoing, the former regime illegally revoked the parliamentary immunities of over two dozen democratically elected members of the National Assembly. The former regime has also continued to torture and murder opponents, including naval officer Acosta Arevalo.
The United States commends the interim government for engaging in a good-faith effort on behalf of the Venezuelan people and consistently showing up to the table with serious proposals despite the aggressive attacks against them. Their commitment to the people of Venezuela is clear. The United States continues to support interim President Juan Guaido, the National Assembly, and the Venezuelan people as they seek to restore democracy to their country.
To this end, the United States and our partners have invoked the TIAR/Rio Treaty, which facilitates further collective action to confront the threat posed by the former regime of Nicolas Maduro to the Venezuelan people and to the region. We look forward to coming together with regional partners to discuss the multilateral economic and political options we can employ to the threat to the security of the region that Maduro represents.