The European Parliament adopted by 471 votes to 101, with 103 abstentions a resolution on the situation in Venezuela after the illegal election of the new National Assembly Presidency and Bureau (parliamentary coup).
The text adopted in plenary had been tabled as a joint resolution by the EPP, S&D, Renew and ECR groups.
Parliament recognised and supported Juan Guaidó as the legitimate President of the National Assembly and as the legitimate interim president of Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, as a result of the transparent and democratic vote of the National Assembly.
Juan Guaidó was elected President of the National Assembly in January 2019. He was sworn in as interim President of Venezuela in accordance with the Constitution of Venezuela and has been recognised as interim President of Venezuela by more than 50 countries, including 25 EU Member States, as well as by the EU itself. Those Member States that have not yet done so have been invited to recognise the legitimate mandate of President Guaido.
Members condemned the attempted coup by the Maduro regime and its allies and their efforts to prevent the National Assembly, Venezuela's only legitimate democratic body, from properly carrying out the constitutional mandate entrusted to it by the Venezuelan people. Current actions against deputies, including the harassment and intimidation of 59 deputies by security bodies and irregular groups, 29 arbitrary arrests and 27 forced exiles, as well as cases of torture and enforced disappearances, hampered the constitutional work of the National Assembly.
Parliament deplored these serious violations, which are incompatible with a legitimate electoral process, and reaffirmed its support for the National Assembly, the only legitimately elected democratic body in Venezuela, while stressing that a peaceful and political solution can only be found by fully respecting the prerogatives of the institutions as well as democratic principles and the defence of the rule of law.
Parliament stated that the EU was ready to support a genuine process of peaceful and democratic resolution of the crisis based on the roadmap adopted by the National Assembly of Venezuela. It called on the Vice-President/High Representative to strengthen the Union's action in favour of the restoration of democracy in Venezuela, in particular through the extension of targeted sanctions against those responsible for human rights violations and repression. It also called for a fact-finding mission to be sent to the country in order to assess the situation.