Norway talks aim to resolve power struggle in Venezuela
Anti-Maduro protesters rally Thursday at the National Assembly in Caracas, Venezuela.
CARACAS, Venezuela — Diplomatic efforts aimed at resolving Venezuela’s crisis accelerated Thursday as the government and opposition sent envoys to talks in Norway, though the two sides’ mutual mistrust and differences on key issues could prevent any quick solution.
The Norwegian attempt to mediate, confirmed by opposition officials, comes amid tensions that exploded in street violence when the opposition called in vain for a military uprising April 30.
Details, including whether envoys from opposing camps would even negotiate directly, were scarce. The initiative coincides with outreach efforts from others: Opposition leader Juan Guaido said in Caracas that he planned to meet a delegation from a mostly European group of nations, and Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland met Thursday with Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez in Havana.
Norway has hosted secret peace talks over the years. They include the negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians in September 1993, talks between the Philippines government and Maoist rebels in 2011, and the brokering of a 2002 cease-fire between Sri Lankan government and Tamil Tiger rebel negotiators. Seven years ago, negotiators from the Colombian government and left-wing FARC rebels held their first direct talks in a decade in Norway.
The Norwegian Centre for Conflict Resolution has worked behind the scenes since last year to bring the two sides in Venezuela together.
In October, it sponsored an initiative to bring a Harvard-trained conflict resolution expert to Caracas to foster dialogue. In recent months, with the support of Norway’s foreign ministry and diplomats based in Bogota, Colombia, its representatives made several trips to Caracas.
Per Wiggen, an official from Norway’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, did not confirm planned talks in Oslo, though Norway has urged the two sides to talk since February. Minister Ine Eriksen Soereide told lawmakers March 5 that Norway could be a mediator.
The representatives in Norway include Information Minister Jorge Rodriguez on the government side and Stalin Gonzalez, a leading member of the opposition-controlled congress, according to opposition officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The myriad diplomatic efforts reflect a recognition in Venezuela that neither side has been able to prevail in the struggle for power, leaving the country in a state of political paralysis after years of hyperinflation and shortages of food and medicine.
Guaido said any talks on resolving the Venezuelan crisis must lead to the end of President Nicolas Maduro’s government, its replacement by a transitional administration and free and fair elections.
Maduro disputes opposition claims that his reelection last year was illegitimate and says U.S. sanctions imposed on Venezuela to try to oust him should be lifted.
In Washington, four demonstrators who had been protesting inside the Venezuelan Embassy for weeks were arrested Thursday. The protesters consider Maduro to be Venezuela’s leader, but the U.S. recognized Guaido’s envoy as ambassador.