The situation in Nicaragua and Venezuela provides for the EU-CELAC meeting

Political Crisis in Nicaragua and Venezuela to surpass two-day meeting in Brussels between foreign ministers European, Latin American and Caribbean, which starts on Monday with the aim of strengthening links in trade, migration and climate change. the contacts that are made "on the sidelines", said Monday the Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Borrell, ensuring that he will speak with his counterparts from Venezuela and Nicaragua

under the slogan "Build bridges and strengthen our association". To meet global challenges ", the Foreign Ministers of the European Union and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) meet for the second time to replace the leaders. [19659005] A refusal of a group of American countries, known as the Lima Group, to attend the third summit of presidents scheduled last October in San Salvador for the situation in Venezuela forced to replace it with this meeting Ministers of Foreign Affairs, while maintaining the agenda

In a global context with the protectionist Donald Trump in the United States, the meeting of Foreign Ministers represents, according to Brazilian diplomacy, the 39, opportunity to "reaffirm the values ​​that bring Latin America, the Caribbean and the EU together"

The agenda includes issues in which the two blocks, which represent more of a billion inhabitants, coincide with Trump as a defense of the Paris Agreement on Climate, Multilateralism or ongoing trade negotiations. .

– Nicaragua, "Worse and worse" –

The meeting, chaired by Salvadorian Foreign Minister Carlos Castaneda and his European counterpart Federica Mogherini, will begin at 4:45 pm (14:45 GMT) and will be followed by "almost all "Ministers of CELAC and" more than half "of the EU, according to a European source.

Beyond the agenda, Nicaragua, where "the situation goes from bad to worse" in the words of Borrell, will be present In the discussions, a day after a new offensive by the government of Daniel Ortega has increased to 280 deaths in three months of demonstrations.

The opposition protests began on April 18 against a reform of the pension system, but led to widespread demand for the departure of Ortega's power, a 72-year-old guerrilla who has since ruled 2007.

European diplomacy yesterday condemned the "acts of violence against students and civilians" in Nicaragua, urging "stop all violence" and achieve "a peaceful and democratic solution in the country in the framework of the dialogue national ", with the mediation of the bishops.

The Nicaraguan authorities have also asked for EU mediation, a European diplomatic source told AFP, for whom accepting it would be "a loss of credibility" before an "autocratic regime". and kleptocratic "and when" every day there are dead ".

"When the right conditions are met, the EU can then help in the humanitarian field, support the electoral commission, help with training and justice actions," added the source, who requested the 39; anonymity.

Nicaragua is one of the Bolivarian countries of ALBA, such as Venezuela, to which the EU has imposed an arms trade embargo and a series of sanctions against civil servants, including the Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, for the situation in the country.

After two days, the ministers plan to approve a joint declaration. one on how to strengthen your relationships.