(Reuters) – Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, whose nearly 12 years in power were marked by a deep economic and social crisis, was sworn in on Friday for a third term, despite a six-month electoral conflict, with international calls calling for him to to keep out of the way, and an increase in the American reward offered for his capture.
Maduro, president since 2013, was declared the winner of the July election by Venezuela’s electoral authority and Supreme Court, although detailed tallies confirming his victory were never released.
Venezuela’s opposition says poll results show a landslide victory for its former candidate Edmundo Gonzalez, recognized as president-elect by several countries, including the United States. International election observers said the vote was undemocratic.
The months following the election saw Gonzalez’s flight to Spain in September, the flight of his ally Maria Corina Machado to Venezuela and the arrest of high-profile opposition figures and protesters.
Gonzalez made a whirlwind tour of the Americas this week and had promised to return to Venezuela.
But Machado, appearing in a video posted Friday on social media, said the timing was not right for his return.
“Edmundo will come to Venezuela to be sworn in as the constitutional president of Venezuela at the right time,” Machado said. “Today it is not viable for Edmundo to enter Venezuela. I asked him not to do so because his integrity is fundamental for the final defeat of the regime and the transition to democracy, which is very close”.
“Maduro has consolidated the coup and the violation of our constitution,” Machado added, calling for street protests. “It’s time to do whatever is necessary to restore it.”
The government, which accused the opposition of fomenting fascist plots against it, said Gonzalez would be arrested if he returned and offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to his capture.
“Soon, very soon, whatever they do, we will manage to enter Venezuela and put an end to this tragedy,” Gonzalez said in his own remarks from the Dominican Republic, asking the military to ignore the “illegal orders ” of Maduro and to cease all military intervention. repression.
In the latest in a series of punitive measures, the outgoing Biden administration increased its reward for information leading to Maduro’s arrest or conviction on drug trafficking charges to $25 million, up from $15 million .
He also placed a $25 million reward on Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello and a $15 million reward on Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino, as well as new sanctions against eight other officials, including the head of the national oil company PDVSA, Hector Obregon.
The United States indicted Maduro and others on drug trafficking and corruption charges, among other charges, in 2020. Maduro has denied those accusations.
The U.S. move coincided with sanctions from Britain and the European Union, each targeting 15 officials, including members of the National Electoral Council and security forces, and Canadian sanctions targeting 14 current and former officials.
The Maduro government has consistently rejected all sanctions, calling them illegitimate measures amounting to “economic war” intended to cripple Venezuela.
“The outgoing government of the United States does not know how to take revenge on us,” Maduro said during his inauguration speech, without directly mentioning sanctions.
Venezuela’s Communications Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the sanctions, while U.S. officials declined to comment on possible additional sanctions, including against the oil industry.
Maduro and his allies have praised what they see as the country’s resilience despite the measures, even as they have historically blamed some economic difficulties and shortages on sanctions.
Maduro’s inauguration was illegitimate, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement, and the United States will not recognize him as president.
“The Venezuelan people and the world know the truth: Maduro clearly lost the 2024 presidential election and has no right to claim the presidency,” Blinken said.
Later Friday, Padrino led members of the armed forces in a separate ceremony, during which they took an oath of total loyalty to Maduro.
DETENTION DETAILS
Both Gonzalez and Machado are under investigation by the Attorney General’s Office for alleged conspiracy, but only Gonzalez has a warrant out for his arrest.
Machado’s first public appearance since August at an anti-government march in Caracas on Thursday was marred by a brief detention.
Machado said in her Friday video that she was stopped by police after leaving the march Thursday, removed the motorcycle she was a passenger on and mounted another. She said she was then asked to film several videos and would then be released.
One of the motorcyclists who accompanied her was shot and arrested, she said.
A video shared on social media and by government officials showed her sitting on a sidewalk and talking about losing her wallet.
The government mocked the incident and denied any involvement, saying it was an attempt by the opposition to whip up sympathy for Machado.
Since Tuesday, some 42 people have been arrested for political reasons, said the legal NGO Foro Penal.
Maduro was sworn in at the National Assembly in Caracas and said he was taking the oath in the name of 16th-century indigenous leader Guaicaipuro and the late President Hugo Chavez, his mentor, among others.
“May this new presidential term be a period of peace, prosperity, equality and new democracy,” Maduro said, adding that he would convene a commission dedicated to constitutional reform.
“This act is possible because Venezuela is peaceful, in the full exercise of its national sovereignty, its popular sovereignty, its national independence,” Maduro said.
Some 2,000 guests from 125 countries attended the inauguration, according to the government.
Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel and Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, Maduro’s loyal allies, were present, as was Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the lower house of the Russian parliament. Bolivian President Luis Arce congratulated Maduro on social media.
ECONOMIC UNREST
Venezuela closed its borders and airspace with Colombia for 72 hours from 5:00 a.m. local time (10:00 GMT), the Foreign Ministry in Bogota said in a statement, adding that the border on the Colombian side would remain open.
The opposition, non-governmental organizations and international bodies such as the United Nations have for years denounced the growing repression against opposition political parties, activists and independent media in Venezuela.
United States President-elect Donald Trump has said the country is run by a dictator.
The Venezuelan government has repeatedly accused the opposition of conspiring with foreign governments and agencies, including the Central Intelligence Agency, to commit acts of sabotage and terrorism.
The government said this week it had arrested seven “mercenaries,” including a senior FBI official and a U.S. military official.
In recent years, the Venezuelan economy has experienced a prolonged crisis marked by triple-digit inflation and the exodus of more than 7 million migrants in search of better opportunities abroad.
Many of Machado’s supporters, including retired Venezuelans who would like to see their children and grandchildren return to the country, say that employment, inflation and unreliable public services are among their main concerns.
The government, for its part, has employed orthodox methods to try to curb inflation, with some success. Maduro said this month that the economy grew 9% last year.
