Venezuelan opponent Juan Guaido, who proclaimed himself interim president of Venezuela in 2019, is once again in the news. Indeed, the Venezuelan prosecutor’s office issued an arrest warrant against him, accusing him of treason, usurpation of functions, money laundering and association to commit a crime. Prosecutors also plan to request a red notice from Interpol to facilitate Guaido’s arrest.
This decision follows investigations carried out by a United States court and disclosed by the press. According to Venezuelan prosecutor Tarek William Saab, Guaido allegedly used the resources of PDVSA, Venezuela’s state-owned oil giant, causing losses estimated at nearly $19 billion. Revelations provided by the US federal court corroborated these accusations.
Since his proclamation as interim president, Guaido has benefited from the support of Washington, which adopted economic sanctions against the regime of Nicolas Maduro. However, Guaido’s interim presidency was officially revoked by the opposition in January 2020, believing it had failed to achieve its goals of overthrowing the government. Despite this, US President Joe Biden maintains the policy of non-recognition of Maduro as Venezuela’s legitimate president and has kept the majority of sanctions in place.
This new development in the political situation in Venezuela raises many questions, including the impact it could have on relations between the United States and Venezuela. The Venezuelan government has already expressed its willingness to cooperate with the international community to address the accusations against Guaido and hopes that this case can contribute to the normalization of relations between the two countries.
It is important to note that this case is still developing and the reactions and consequences of the issuance of the arrest warrant against Guaido remain to be seen. It will be interesting to follow the development of this case and see how it may influence the political future of Venezuela and international relations in the region.