While many countries have already recognized Venezuela National Assembly leader Juan Guaido as the country’s legitimate president, Europe has been holding out.
However, that may be about to change after a group of European leaders gave Nicolas Maduro an ultimatum on Saturday. Leaders of Spain, France, and Germany announced that they will recognize Guaido as Venezuela’s legitimate president if Maduro does not schedule new, free, and fair elections within the next eight days. (RELATED: Ocasio-Cortez Declines To Pick Sides In Venezuela Fight As Democratic Socialists Demand She Resist ‘American Imperialism’)
“If in eight days there are not free, transparent and democratic elections, Spain will recognize Juan Guaido as the legitimate president of Venezuela,” Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron agreed.
“The Venezuelan people must be able to freely decide their future,” Macron said. “Without elections announced in eight days, we could recognize [Guaido] as Venezuela’s ‘President-in-charge’ to implement this political process.”
“The people of Venezuela must be able to freely and securely decide about its future,” Merkel said, according to the Associated Press.
The United States, Canada, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, and Columbia have all officially recognized Guaido as Venezuela’s legitimate president. (RELATED: Pro-Maduro Groups Killed At Least 20 People In Two Days Amid Political Turmoil)
The communist Maduro was “re-elected” last year in an election that was seen by many as a sham.