Venezuela’s opposition and the government of President Nicolás Maduro could restart talks for the first time since the US eased oil sanctions on state-owned oil firm PdV in late 2022.
By Argus Media – Carlos Camacho
Apr 20, 2023
Representatives of the Maduro government and those of the opposition have both confirmed that the sides will meet in Bogota, Colombia, on 25 April in talks hosted by Colombia’s first leftist President Gustavo Petro. México has offered to host later talks.
The US government has insisted that Venezuela must ensure free and fair elections as the opposition demands for it to further lift sanctions, after it allowed US major Chevron to export crude from its joint ventures with PdV late last year.
Still, the Bogota meeting will only be a waystation toward resuming México talks under a framework set up by Norway, which last year had led to an unfulfilled initial agreement for fair elections, opposition leader Juan Guaido said today. He was previously the interim president of a US-recognized parallel Venezuelan assembly since 2019 before being voted out in December. Guaido has not been replaced but continues to speak for parts of the opposition.
Guaido also urged Colombian president Gustavo Petro to engage US president Joe Biden in a meeting with him today in Washington DC to press for elections.
Petro ahead of his meeting with Biden at the White House today said he will ask for sanctions relief for Venezuela. But the US administration has no plans to do so unless there is meaningful progress toward ensuring free elections in Venezuela, a senior US official said.
The initial lifting of some sanctions has supported Venezuela’s oil production, and led to the first exports to the US since 2019. Production from the Chevron joint ventures with PdV alone has reached about 120,000 b/d and represents about 20pc of Venezuela’s oil exports, one source who asked not to be named told Argus.
Despite the increased production at stake, the expectations are low for talks, or for the start of more dialogue in Mexico.
“I really don’t see that they [Maduro’s government] are offering anything new, just more of the same”, an opposition adviser for energy policy told Argus. “More of the same won’t get anybody more oil.”
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