The European Union would recognize Juan Guaidó as Venezuela's president if Maduro did not request an election soon – 25/01/2019

The 28 countries of the European Union (EU) could be added in a few days to the recognition of Juan Guaidó as "president in charge" of Venezuela. The governments of the 28 were negotiating this Friday in Brussels that the EU will recognize in block to Guaidó if Nicolás Maduro does not agree to call early elections in the short term.

Spain, which traditionally marks European policy vis-à-vis Venezuela, wanted from the outset to create a European consensus so that recognition is made in bulk. Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Borrell defended his initiative on Friday, saying: "We do not want to determine who governs in Venezuela, we want the Venezuelans to be the ones who do it."

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The conservative opposition parties in Spain have pressed President Pedro Sanchez for days for Madrid to recognize Guaidó, even without a European agreement, which the president has refused. Sanchez had also received Thursday in Davos pressure from Presidents Iván Duque (Colombia), Lenín Moreno (Ecuador) and Carlos Alvarado (Costa Rica), who had asked him to intervene so that the EU could recognize Guaidó.

A group of countries, including Denmark, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, support immediate recognition. France, without much reaching, has supported Guaidó since Thursday night but did not recognize it.

On the other side is Greece, whose ruling party, ultralistist Syriza, issued Thursday a statement in favor of the Maduro regime. Austria also refuses recognition for the moment. The refusal of Greece is given by the ultralist ideology of a large part of the ruling party against the increasingly pragmatic head of government, Alexis Tsipras. That of Austria because the far-right party FPO, which heads the chancery, does not want to bother Moscow, which defends Maduro against Guaidó.

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A Spanish-German proposal served to move towards a consensual position, which was to be approved this Friday and would allow the EU to recognize Guaidó if Maduro does not agree to convene Venezuelans at the polls. elections that Europe wants to be free, with all the democratic guarantees internationally recognized and in which the political opposition can participate without hindrance.

The proposal could go forward thanks to a ploy by the European Chancellor Federica Mogherini, who put it on the table using what is called in Brussels a "procedure of administrative silence" . A text is proposed and if no one raises objections, it is approved.