The conference on Venezuela’s political crisis, convened last week by Colombian President Gustavo Petro, had an ambitious goal: to relaunch stalled talks between the Venezuelan government and the opposition ahead of presidential elections next year. But this week’s summit failed to outline a clear way to reactivate talks in Mexico that have been stalled since late last year. Instead, points that had already been agreed to were reiterated: the need to hold free elections and to resume negotiations, and the easing of sanctions on Venezuela.
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s government, which oversaw 2018 presidential elections that were widely considered illegitimate, has been accused of suppressing opposition voices—a campaign that some fear could ramp up before the elections in 2024. Meanwhile, the international community and the Venezuelan opposition have agreed that a free and fair vote could help resolve the crisis in the country, which has seen a mass exodus amid political instability and socioeconomic hardships.
In 2018, Maduro won the presidency after barring opposition figures from participating. Analysts said the conference in Colombia’s capital, which neither the Venezuelan government nor the opposition were invited to attend, helped firm up international support, but it also showed that any quick fixes to the Venezuelan crisis are unlikely.
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