UK reaffirmed support for Guaidó ahead of Venezuelan gold hearing in England

The British government reiterated on Monday that it recognizes the opposition Juan Guaidó as president of Venezuela, a measure aimed at canceling a request from the Central Bank of Venezuela (BCV) backed by Nicolás Maduro to repatriate nearly $ 1 billion in gold from the country stored in London.

Legal teams representing Maduro and Guaidó will be before the UK Supreme Court on Monday in the final stage of a long standoff over what represents around 15% of Venezuela’s foreign exchange reserves.

Lawyers representing the central bank say the sale of gold would fund the response to the coronavirus pandemic and strengthen a health system destroyed by more than six years of economic crisis.

The Bank of England, whose vaults house the gold, refused to release it, after the British government joined dozens of other countries in early 2019 in backing Guaidó., arguing that Maduro’s victory in the presidential elections the previous year was rigged.

“UK government is clear Juan Guaidó has been recognized by Her Majesty’s government since February 2019 as the only legitimate president of Venezuela, ”the British Foreign Office said in a statement, after being invited by the Supreme Court to clarify its position ahead of Monday’s hearing.

“He (Guaidó) is the only recognized individual with the authority to act on behalf of Venezuela as head of state,” added a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who said the southern country -american needed “a peaceful transition to democracy.” .

The gold dispute began in May 2018, when Maduro won re-election in a vote the main opposition coalition boycotted and called a farce.. Later Boris Johnson, then British Foreign Secretary, said: “We may have to tighten the economic screw on Venezuela.”

Concerned about mounting sanctions against Maduro’s regime, the Central Bank of Venezuela (BCV) told the Bank of England (BoE) that it wanted to bring back 14 tonnes of gold it had stored there.

Towards the end of 2018, BCV chairman Calixto Ortega traveled to London to discuss the issue with BoE officialsaccording to Sarosh Zaiwalla, a lawyer representing BCV in London, but Ortega was told there was an issue with his authority.

In July 2020, a London commercial court ruled that the British government had recognized Guaidó as interim president and that the “one voice doctrine” gave him the power to tell the destination of funds from the country abroad.

But three months later, the Court of Appeal returned the case whereas this recognition could in fact be a mere political statement and that it was possible that the Johnson executive would continue to recognize the Maduro administration “de facto”.

In December, the Supreme Court allowed Guaidó’s representatives to appeal this order and, in April, the opposing party to counter.

If the British Supreme Court eventually comes to an agreement with the board of directors of the Central Bank of Venezuela appointed by Guaidó, it would set a precedent that the opposition hopes to use to recover Venezuelan assets deposited in other central banks. European.

(With information from Reuters)

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