Maduro called on the Venezuelan opposition to participate in parliamentary elections

At the same time, the President of the Republic admitted that the situation with the proliferation of coronavirus may prevent them from taking place.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Wednesday urged the opposition to nominate candidates for the parliamentary elections scheduled for 2020.

“Nominate your candidates. We will solve the problems of Venezuelans in the parliamentary elections, no matter who wins”, –  Maduro said during an event that was broadcast on his Twitter.

Maduro acknowledged that the situation with the proliferation of coronavirus could hinder the elections. “This year we should have elections if the pandemic allows”, –  he said.

The Venezuelan Government informed about the first two cases of coronavirus infection in the country on March 13, the same day a state of emergency was introduced. March 17, Maduro announced the decision to introduce quarantine throughout the country. As of May 13, 440 cases of infestation have been recorded in Venezuela, with at least 10 people dead.

The political situation in Venezuela deteriorated after January 23, 2019 when the leader of the country’s opposition, Juan Guaydo, whose appointment as Speaker of Parliament was annulled by the Supreme Court two days earlier, declared himself Acting President. He was recognized as interim head of state by the United States, joined by the Lima Group countries (except Mexico), the Organization of American States and most EU countries. Maduro called it a coup attempt and announced that he had broken off diplomatic relations with the United States. He was supported by Russia, Belarus, China, Cuba, Iran, Nicaragua, Syria and Turkey.