Maria Corina Machado, leader of the opposition in Venezuela, thanked Foreign Minister Gabriela Sommerfeld for the stance that Ecuador has shown throughout the support it has given following the political crisis that the Caribbean country is going through.
But he highlighted Ecuador’s actions at the extraordinary session of the Organization of American States (OAS) to address the recent Venezuelan presidential elections, where the regime of Nicolás Maduro was proclaimed re-elected.
“(Thank you) for your words of support for democracy in Venezuela and the demand for respect for the vote cast,” he said in a post on X. He also expressed his affection for the Ecuadorian people. Ecuador was one of the 17 countries that voted in favor of an OAS resolution for Venezuela to reveal the voting records, however, there was not the necessary support.
Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Grenada, Honduras, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Saint Lucia abstained. Dominica, Mexico, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago did not participate in the session, as did Venezuela, which has been absent for some time.
During the session, Gabriela Sommerfeld said that Ecuador “has welcomed nearly 450,000 (Venezuelan) migrants, representing the country per capita with the highest reception according to UNHCR and IOM,” said Sommerfeld.
He also stated that, despite budgetary limitations, Ecuador has guaranteed the rights of all foreigners “without any discrimination, working for their inclusion and integration.”
Chancellor Sommerfeld recalled that President Daniel Noboa expressed that the Venezuelan people “had an opportunity to elect their leaders freely without pressure and in a democratic environment,” and that he was concerned that “recalcitrant figures of the old politics” would aspire to perpetuate themselves in power and keep the nation kidnapped and alienated.
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