EU's Borrell in 'ash heap of history': Venezuela's FM
4 Min Read
Venezuela's Minister of Foreign says Borrell "has turned the European Union into a crumbling, pro-war colonial institution."
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Venezuela's Foreign Minister Yvan Gil Pinto attends a joint press conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow, Russia, on Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023. (AP, Pool)
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell "is leaving politics with blood on his hands," having failed in his repeated attempts to harm the Venezuelan people by inventing fictional governments, asserted Venezuela's Minister of Foreign, Yvan Gil Pinto.
In an interview aired on Spanish television, Borrell referred to the Venezuelan government under President Nicolas Maduro as "dictatorial".
"When we refer to the 'ash heap of history,' we are pointing to the place where Borrell is—going from one interview to another as the spokesperson for evil," Gil Pinto said.
He took aim at the EU foreign policy chief, who "doubly failed in his attempts to harm the Venezuelan people, inventing fictitious governments (Guaido 1.0 and 2.0)."
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The top Venezuelan diplomat indicated that Borrell "has turned the European Union into a crumbling, pro-war colonial institution."
"Pathetic! This is how we in Venezuela describe the dark legacy of someone like Borrell," he added.
On Thursday, Venezuela recalled its ambassador to Madrid for consultations and summoned Spain’s envoy to Caracas for discussions, following remarks by Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles, who referred to President Nicolas Maduro’s administration as a "dictatorship" and expressed support for "the Venezuelans who had to leave their country" due to his government.
Addressing the matter during an interview for private Spanish television channel Telecinco, Borrell cited that over 2,000 individuals had been "arbitrarily detained" since Venezuela’s presidential election on July 28, which the opposition claims Maduro rigged.
He claimed that political parties in Venezuela are "subjected to a thousand limitations on their activities" and opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia "has had to flee" to Spain.
"What do you call all this? Of course, this is a dictatorial, authoritarian, dictatorial regime. But just saying so doesn't solve anything. What we need to do is to try to solve it," said Borrell.
Following a meeting with Spain's ambassador, Gil Pinto released a statement asserting that Caracas would "accept no interference from the Spanish government" and would "take the necessary steps... to protect its sovereignty."
Spain granted asylum to Gonzalez Urrutia, with Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez meeting with the far-right opposition candidate on Thursday.
Gil condemned Robles' comments as "rude and insolent," while the head of Venezuela's parliament called for severing diplomatic ties with Madrid.
In Spain, lawmakers voted to urge Sanchez’s government to recognize Gonzalez Urrutia as the "legitimate winner" of the presidential election.
The political crisis in Venezuela has intensified since authorities declared incumbent President Maduro the winner of the July 28 election. The opposition has rejected the results, claiming that Gonzalez Urrutia had won by a wide margin.
Several countries, including the United States, the European Union, and multiple Latin American nations, have refused to recognize Maduro’s victory until Caracas provides a detailed breakdown of the election results.
In the aftermath of the election, Venezuelan prosecutors issued an arrest warrant for Gonzalez Urrutia due to his continued claims that he was the legitimate victor.
Before leaving the country, the far-right candidate had been in hiding for a month, ignoring three summonses to appear before prosecutors.
Western-backed post-election riots in Venezuela have resulted in 27 deaths and 192 injuries, with the government reporting around 2,400 arrests.
Venezuelan authorities confirmed that Maduro was re-elected with 52% of the vote. However, the opposition released its own data, claiming that Gonzalez Urrutia secured 67% of the votes.
The country’s electoral authority has been unable to provide a full breakdown of the election results, attributing the delay to a cyberattack on its systems.
Read more: Venezuela condemns US sanctions on electoral, government officials
