Opposition Leader from Venezuela Meets with President Biden in Washington
Edmundo Gonzalez, who claims to be the rightful leader of the country, also met with Trump’s proposed national security adviser, Mike Waltz.
Venezuelan opposition leader Edmundo Gonzalez had a meeting with President Joe Biden at the White House on Monday, just days before Nicolas Maduro is set to be inaugurated for a third term as president of the South American nation.
Gonzalez asserts his victory in last July’s contested election, alleging that Maduro illegitimately won through repression and vote tampering. He is currently seeking support to remove the incumbent president by Friday when, by law, the next presidential term begins in the country.
According to a White House readout of the meeting, Biden and Gonzalez agreed that the former diplomat’s election victory “should be recognized through a peaceful return to democratic governance.”
They both raised serious concerns about “Maduro and his representatives’ unjust and indiscriminate use of repression against peaceful protesters, democracy activists, and civil society.”
Gonzalez stated, “We had a lengthy, productive, and friendly discussion with President Biden and his team. We expressed our gratitude to the United States government for the support in our fight for the restoration of democracy in Venezuela, a commitment that we will continue until the end of the president’s term.”
Biden shared on the social media platform X that the “people of Venezuela deserve a peaceful transfer of power to the true winner of their presidential election,” affirming that Gonzalez should be sworn in four days from now, not Maduro.
The government in Caracas criticized the meeting, calling it “grotesque” that Biden is supporting a “violent project” to deprive the country of its democracy.
During his time in Washington, Gonzalez also had a meeting with Mike Waltz, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for national security adviser.
Gonzalez wrote about the meeting on X, “One of the topics we delved into was the civic protest of Venezuelans on January 9. He assured that the United States and the world will be vigilant about the events in our country.”
