The president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, described the peace dialogue between the government and the opposition as an important step for the well-being of the country.
“The signing of the second partial agreement between the Bolivarian Government that I preside over and the Unitary Platform of one of the oppositions opens the way to a new chapter for Venezuela, in order to continue advancing towards peace and well-being that all Venezuelans yearn for” The president wrote on his Twitter account.
This Saturday the dialogue process between the parties, suspended more than a year ago, was resumed in Mexico City, with the mediation of Norway.
The signed document provides for a series of humanitarian issues, including the return of legitimate resources, property of the Government of Venezuela, which “are blocked in the international financial system.”
It is about 2,700 million dollars, which will be used to strengthen the national public health system in equipment, infrastructure and medicines, as well as to strengthen the energy service, education and attention to natural emergencies, according to a government statement.
The parties also intend to create a trust fund to expand social protection measures with support and guidance from the UN. Likewise, they agreed on the creation of a National Table of Social Attention, which will serve as an “auxiliary technical body of the dialogue and negotiation table, which will work on the realization of specific actions and programs of social attention for the Venezuelan people.”
In addition, the request was reiterated for the Venezuelan businessman and diplomat Alex Saab to be released in the US and to be able to join the delegation of the Maduro government.
Suspension of previous dialogue
The last round of talks between the government and the opposition began in Mexico in August 2021, also with the mediation of Norway.
During the first round, the parties signed a memorandum of understanding to reaffirm their willingness to dialogue. However, in less than two months the talks were suspended after the extradition from Cape Verde to the US of Alex Saab, who is currently being held in a federal prison in South Florida.
