Ukraine among 20 countries pushing for Venezuela election transparency
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Ukraine, along with 20 other countries, has joined a declaration regarding Venezuela's presidential election, the Ukrainian Ministry of Economy reported on Aug. 17.
The declaration was signed during the inauguration of Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader, where Ukraine was represented by Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko.
"Respect for human dignity is a fundamental principle of peaceful coexistence in our societies," Svyrydenko said.
“We call for adherence to democratic principles, as well as the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all Venezuelans, including the freedom of peaceful assembly and expression.”
She highlighted that defending democratic principles in Venezuela is as important to Ukraine as the values being defended by Latin American countries in the face of Russian aggression.
The signatories of the declaration called for the following actions:
- Release Venezuelans arbitrarily detained during peaceful protests;
- Publish the original election protocols;
- Conduct an impartial and independent review of the election results, preferably by an international organization, to ensure respect for the will of the Venezuelan people as expressed in the election.
Venezuela's presidential election
Venezuela's presidential election took place on July 28. The following day, the National Electoral Council of Venezuela announced that, with 80% of the votes counted, Nicolás Maduro had received more than 51%, while opposition candidate Edmundo González of the Unitary Platform political alliance had 44%.
According to a poll by Edison Research, known for its U.S. election studies, González was expected to receive about 65% of the vote, with Maduro at 31%. Local firm Meganalisis predicted González would win 65%, while Maduro would garner less than 14%.
After the results were announced, opposition leader María Corina Machado stated that, by their calculations, González had secured 70% of the vote, with Maduro receiving 30%.
"We won, and everyone knows it. The entire international community is aware of what happened in Venezuela and how people voted for change," Machado said, adding that the opposition "will defend the truth."
González, for his part, claimed that election rules were violated. In particular, a senior opposition official was not allowed to be present during the nationwide vote count, and opposition observers were forced out of several polling stations.
Bloomberg reported on July 30 that the Venezuelan opposition claimed to have sufficient evidence of election fraud, after which the government declared Maduro's re-election.
Maduro became president of Venezuela following the death of Hugo Chávez in 2013. If his 2024 election victory is confirmed, he will serve a third consecutive six-year term. His 2018 re-election was widely viewed as unfair and rigged. The Maduro government is a traditional ally of Iran and Russia.
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