The European Parliament has approved the recognition of Edmundo González as "legitimate and democratically elected" president of Venezuela with the support of the European People's Party, which had promoted the resolution; Meloni's radical right, the far-right in Germany, and the Vox group; and five socialist MEPs from Portugal.
This last point is significant, as the rest of the social democratic family has completely rejected the measure, and Spanish socialists have been particularly harsh on the People's Party. "They have been left only with the far-right," say socialist sources, who walked out of the negotiation table on Tuesday as they refused to recognize González as president and stated that no European socialist would vote in favor of the People's Party resolution. "There is no position other than 'no'," they stated, and "the premature recognition of Edmundo González as the election winner is not useful considering the precedents," they add, referring to Juan Guaidó.
However, most of the socialist group from Portugal has decided to support this recognition. These five MEPs out of a total of eight: Francisco Assis, Isilda Gomes, Sérgio Gonçalves, André Rodrigues, and Carla Tavares.
The People's Party criticizes that "Spanish socialists have once again chosen to stand on the side of dictator Maduro, leading a tyrannical regime that intimidates, tortures, and subjugates its citizens," pointing out that the approved text is "harsh."
However, the final text has undergone some substantial changes compared to the one initially presented by the People's Party. One of them is that the second point of the original document, which requested the EU and member states to make the same recognition of the "legitimate" president, did not go through. Although there is a certain contradiction in this matter because the European Union is asked "to do everything possible to ensure Edmundo González takes office on January 10, 2025, in accordance with the Venezuelan Constitution."
There is also no international arrest warrant against Maduro for his "crimes against humanity," which was included in the initial document and has been modified by an amendment from the Renew group and specifically by the MEP from the PNV. This modification "calls on the International Criminal Court to include ongoing human rights violations and arbitrary detentions in its investigations into the alleged crimes against humanity committed by the Maduro regime and to hold those responsible accountable."
However, the European Parliament does urge the EU to "do everything possible" to ensure Edmundo González takes office on January 10, 2025, in accordance with the Venezuelan Constitution, and also demands "the recognition of María Corina Machado as the leader of the democratic forces in Venezuela." "The extreme violence and repression," resulting in over 20 deaths and more than 2400 detentions and forced disappearances, including approximately 120 children, are also "condemned."
The voting result was 309 in favor, 201 against, and 12 abstentions. This means that nearly 200 MEPs were absent from the vote, and among those who voted against, in addition to the Spanish socialists mentioned, were the groups of BNG and ERC, as well as Podemos, Sumar, and Bildu.