The United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, said that ruler Nicolás Maduro did not win the presidential elections and that he should not be awarded with concessions.
The Secretary of State of the United States, Marco Rubio, said Thursday that the solution to the crisis that Venezuela is experiencing is a “legitimate election”, that the ruler Nicolás Maduro did not win the presidential elections and that they should not “reward” with concessions.
“I think that the future of Venezuela corresponds to the Venezuelan people and that the solution is a legitimate, democratic, observed choice. Maduro can never win a legitimate choice in Venezuela, and he knows. That is why the last elections were stolen, ”he said in an interview with Fox News This Thursday
The Venezuelan opposition leader, María Corina Machado, has insisted that until the result of the presidential elections held on July 28 of last year is respected, in which fraud denounces, it is not appropriate to participate in elections of any kind.
Rubio said that the US government cannot make “concessions” as, he said, former president Joe Biden did.
“And after those false elections concluded? Not taking away the sanction, not imposing sanctions such as Donald Trump has just done, ”he continued.
Arguing that Venezuela has not complied with “receiving irregular migrants deported to the rapid rhythm they had agreed”, and that the Maduro government did not meet the electoral conditions for the elections, the Trump administration decided to cancel, at the beginning of this month, the license that allowed the American Chevron to produce oil in Venezuelan territory.
In November 2022, the administration of former president Joe Biden issued an expanded license that allowed Chevron to import oil or oil products produced by their companies in Venezuela, after the Venezuelan government and the opposition announced that they would restore political conversations.
It was planned that, after conversations between Caracas and Washington, deportation flights from the US will resume this Friday, but were rescheduled for poor climatic conditions, according to the Minister of Interior of Venezuela.
Rubio reiterated that they have asked Venezuela to return to “gang members” of the Criminal Band of the Train of Aragua and accuses Maduro's government of not doing so. Venezuelan officials have ruled out that the nationals who were deported last month have links with that organization.
The Secretary of State also said that the Maduro government intends to be “the operational base of Iran” in the hemisphere.
“That is unacceptable. That never Donald Trump, President Trump, will accept that Iran has an operational base in our hemisphere, in Venezuela or anywhere, ”he said.