Norway opens the door to a horizon that seemed far away

What looked like a chimera is now closer. The dialogue between the Venezuelan government and the opposition, which up to now was not impossible, has given a glimmer of hope and opened the door to a possible thanks to the mediation of Norway, which has brought the Two parties to get to Oslo try to find a way to understand.

Acting President Juan Guaidó, who also admitted talks with the international contact group led by the European Union, confirmed the talks, but he was cautious. "Yes, some are sent to Norway, and now I've said until I'm exhausted that we're not going to engage in false trading," he said.

In this line, the opposition leader warned that "there is no negotiation at all" but discussions in response to a call from Norway, including "l & # 39; "mediation" effort takes "months" and is "another initiative of a country that wants to collaborate."

The existence of these talks, confirmed Wednesday by Venezuelan political sources, was ratified yesterday by the Norwegian TV NRK.

NRK reported that contacts began several weeks ago in Cuba and that several meetings were held in a secret location in Oslo with the mediation of the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Norway's role as negotiator in Colombia's peace agreements earned it the respect of all parties, including the governments of Cuba and Venezuela, who also participated in the resolution of the conflict, said Leiv Marsteintredet , professor of comparative politics at the University of Colombia. Bergen.

"Norway is probably already a year or more in conversation with both parties, with the government and the opposition of Venezuela, at least separately, confirmed by the Norwegian Foreign Minister, Ine Eriksen Søreide," added the expert.

According to former Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos, Norway has made support for peace in the world "a true state policy".

"National Dialogue"

In a speech circulated by the official network, Chavez's president, Nicolás Maduro, did not admit these conversations but called for a "grand national dialogue" and acknowledged that his minister of Communication and Public Relations had been in charge of the talks. Information, Jorge Rodríguez, fulfilled a "very important mission" outside of Venezuela.

Rodríguez and the governor of the state of Miranda, Héctor Rodríguez, are the delegates of Chavismo in Oslo, while those of the opposition are the former deputy Gerardo Blyde and the former minister Fernando Martínez Mottola.

Guaidó also announced yesterday the first meeting of its sector with the International Contact Group, composed of the following countries: Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, United Kingdom, Sweden, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Ecuador and Uruguay. "We will have a meeting with the Governor in Council, and we reiterate that any mediation initiative must go through the end of the usurpation, the transitional government and free elections," he wrote on Twitter.

"We are working on all the options to end the dictatorship and we are moving forward in each of them: the mediation of countries approaching a solution in Venezuela, international cooperation and constitutional action with our armed forces" , he added.

The CPG became more important after the frustrated civic uprising of April 30, while the Lima Group coincided in the search for solutions.

Maduro militants arrested in Washington