He President of Mexico, Andres Manuel Lopez Obradorannounced that he will speak this Thursday afternoon with his counterparts from Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and from Colombia, Gustavo Petroon crisis in Venezuelawhere all three agree in calling for transparency in the vote counting.
“Yes, we will probably speak on the phone with President Lula and President Petro today at noon in Mexico, around 2 p.m. (20:00 GMT). We will discuss the positions that exist in the case of Venezuela. We have acted with prudence.“, López Obrador said in his morning press conference.
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The three leaders have not yet recognized the reelection of President Nicolas Madurowhich proclaimed the National Electoral Council (CNE) of Venezuela and they agree in asking that all the minutes be published and waiting to accept any result.
But there are nuances in their positions, as López Obrador has stated that “no test” of the electoral fraud denounced by the oppositionLula has considered that “it is a normal electoral process” and Petro has warned of “Serious doubts surrounding the electoral process“.
The Mexican leader announced that his approach in the joint talk will be “Let there be no violence“, that “the will of the Venezuelans be respected“, that “the evidence and the minutes of the election results are presented“, and “that there is no interference“, in particular of the Organization of American States (OAS).
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“We will wait (for the results) and yes, we will have that conversation, but that is our proposal, that there be no violence, that confidence be given to the electoral authorities of Venezuela, that the minutes be collected, because it cannot be said that one won or the other won, if there is no evidence.“, he explained.
López Obrador trusted Maduro’s statements, assuring that on Wednesday he “He stated that they will deliver the minutes” and the “is asking the corresponding electoral body to call on the parties, the candidates, to hand over the information they possess.“.
For this reason, he requested that “that everyone participates, that everyone contributes the data they have“.
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“If there is a will to clarify things and respect the vote of the citizens, an agreement will be reached. That is what I wish, that an agreement is reached, that there is dialogue, and that there is evidence, but that we do not rush to disqualify anyone and wait.“, he said.
On the other hand, he questioned the role of the OAS in the conflict for “to set himself up as an electoral judge“, defending Mexico’s absence from the urgent meeting called by the organization on Wednesday.
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The president indicated that the elections are “an issue that fundamentally corresponds to Venezuelans“.
“By not acting prudently, the OAS does not help, that is why we do not attend, because it seems like an appendix of hegemonic governments or conservative right-wing governments, authoritarian, in reality antidemocratic.“, he said.
EFE