European Union will send its first electoral mission to Venezuela in 15 years for the November elections

The European Union will send an electoral observation mission to the regional and local elections to be held in Venezuela on November 21, the European External Action Service (EEAS) reported on Wednesday.

“An unprecedented electoral process will take place, with the participation of the majority of political forces, for the first time in recent years”The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Policy said in a statement, Josep Borrell.

It will be the first electoral mission that the European Union send the Venezuela for 15 years, assured the high representative.

Borrell He was “convinced” that the work of the electoral mission “will be an important contribution to a peaceful solution controlled by Venezuelans”, as well as “a path towards credible, inclusive and transparent elections.”

The head of the delegation will be the Portuguese Socialist MEP Isabel Santos, who assured, in the same statement, that “after years of tensions and polarization, the next elections are her possible important step to find a peaceful and democratic solution to the crisis in Venezuela. ”.

Santos said he hopes to work with state authorities, political parties, candidates and civil society organizations, “with the aim of defending democratic values ​​and promoting a credible, inclusive and transparent process.”

The majority of the Venezuelan opposition, including the sector led by Juan Guaidó, will attend the elections on November 21 for the first time since 2017, after requesting abstention in the 2018 presidential elections, in which Nicolás Maduro was re-elected, and the 2020 Parliamentarians, in which Chavismo obtained 92% of the deputies in the running.

The European Union It did not recognize the elections of December 6 of last year because it considered that they did not meet international democratic standards.

The electoral mission will arrive in Caracas next October and will remain in Venezuela until the electoral process has been completed.

After the elections, the experts of the mission will make an initial assessment in a press conference and once the electoral process has finished, they will publish the final report, with recommendations for future elections, said the European External Action Service.

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