Twenty-eight former Latin American presidents, including José María Aznar, Iván Duque, and Mauricio Macri, have issued a statement demanding the governments of Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico to recognize Edmundo González Urrutia as the elected president of Venezuela. The Democratic Initiative of Spain and the Americas (Grupo IDEA) convened these leaders, who emphasize the imperative need to cease the omissive behaviors of the mentioned governments and acknowledge the democratically elected president.
In the statement, these former presidents argue that recognizing Edmundo González Urrutia as the elected president would help preserve democracy in their countries and would prevent them from being accused of collusion with the repressive Venezuelan regime. They denounce massive deprivations of liberty, exiles, acts of torture, and violations against adolescents and children perpetrated by Nicolás Maduro's regime.
The statement arises from the IX Presidential Dialogue, held in Miami, where it was confirmed that the records of the presidential elections in Venezuela, published by the opposition, confirm the authenticity of the results. Despite this, Maduro refused to disclose the electoral records and their results, disregarding the Constitution and established deadlines.
The former Latin American presidents believe that Maduro has carried out a coup d'état by improperly proclaiming himself the winner of the elections. Among the signatories of the statement are also Mariano Rajoy, Álvaro Uribe, Óscar Arias, Felipe Calderón, Vicente Fox, Eduardo Frei, Luis Alberto Lacalle, Guillermo Lasso, Carlos Mesa, Lenin Moreno, Andrés Pastrana, and Jorge 'Tuto' Quiroga, among others.
