Petro spoke with Boric to “strengthen” the block that is asking for electoral records in Venezuela

After the joint statement between Colombia, Brazil and Mexico on the controversial elections in Venezuela became known, Colombian President Gustavo Petro himself shared the document through his account on the social network X and indicated that he communicated with his Chilean counterpart, Gabriel Bóric, to join the bloc.

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“This is the joint statement with the governments of Brazil and Mexico in search of a political solution in Venezuela. Once the statement was issued, I spoke with President Bóric of Chile to strengthen this Latin American group.“, wrote Gustavo Petro.

On the afternoon of Thursday, August 1, 2024, Colombia, Brazil and Mexico jointly issued a statement on the elections in Venezuela, the results of which, according to the CNE, favored Nicolás Maduro, a situation that sparked protests and allegations of fraud in that nation. The three countries requested that the voting records be revealed.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and Petro said in the joint statement that Electoral disputes must be settled through “institutional” means and that the principle of popular sovereignty must be respected through “impartial verification of the results.”

Leaders call to “maintain social peace” and avoid “violent episodes”

Likewise, the Governments called on political actors to act with “maximum caution and restraint” during the protests to to avoid “an escalation of violent episodes”, after at least 11 deaths and hundreds of arrests were reported.

“Maintaining social peace and protecting human lives must be the priority concerns at this time”the joint statement highlights.

The CNE declared Maduro the winner with 80% of the votes counted, over opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia.

Lula da Silva, Petro and López Obrador have all avoided recognizing the results without cutting ties with the Maduro administration.

The three leaders abstained or avoided participating in the Voting on a resolution of the Organization of American States (OAS) which called for, among other things, the immediate publication of the minutes of each polling station.

The Maduro Government has already expelled diplomats from several countries in the region, including Argentina and Chile, whose leader, President Boric, has openly questioned the validity of the results.

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