On the situation in Venezuela following the usurpation of the presidency on 10 January 2025

B100071/2025

European Parliament resolution on the situation in Venezuela following the usurpation of the presidency on 10 January 2025

(2025/2519(RSP))

The European Parliament,

– having regard to its previous resolutions on Venezuela,

– having regard to the statement of 10 January 2025 by the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy on behalf of the European Union on the events of 10 January 2025 in Venezuela,

– having regard to the statement of 15 January 2025 by the Spokesperson of the European External Action Service on recent decisions by the Venezuelan authorities,

– having regard to the statement of 10 January 2025 by the G7 Foreign Ministers on Venezuela,

– having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and to other UN human rights treaties and instruments,

– having regard to the report of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of 27 December 2024 on human rights violations following the elections in Venezuela,

– having regard to the final report of the EU election observation mission to Venezuela on the regional and municipal elections of 21 November 2021,

– having regard to the Partial Agreement on the Promotion of Political Rights and Electoral Guarantees for All, most commonly known as the Barbados Agreement,

– having regard to Rule 136(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas the presidential election of July 2024 lacked basic transparency and integrity guarantees and cannot be considered democratic;

B. whereas official data was neither published nor made accessible to international independent bodies; whereas based on the ‘actas’ published by the democratic opposition, Edmundo González Urrutia claims to have received the highest number of votes in the election;

C. whereas in recent months, tensions have been rising and violence has escalated dramatically in relation to protests and criticism on social media, with large-scale detentions and brutal repression by Nicolás Maduro’s government;

D. whereas Maduro’s government has continually harassed, persecuted and censored activists, journalists and civil society organisations in the midst of a complex humanitarian emergency and a profound human rights crisis that is pushing an unprecedented number of people to flee in search of safety and protection, being the cause of one of the largest displacement crises in the world;

E. whereas since 2013, Maduro’s government has seen Venezuela’s gross domestic product drop by 80 %, prompting more than 7 million of the country’s 30 million citizens to migrate;

F. whereas the 2018 elections also lacked basic guarantees of transparency and integrity;

G. whereas it is imperative to resolve the current situation and find a negotiated way forward; whereas any solution to this deep and multifaceted conflict must be found within the framework of the rule of law, be in accordance with international standards and fully respect democracy and human rights;

H. whereas the rights to peaceful protest and freedom of expression are fundamental human rights;

I. whereas Edmundo González Urrutia and María Corina Machado received the Sakharov Prize in December 2024;

J. whereas the Council has decided to adopt a new package of targeted sanctions against 15 individuals responsible for undermining democracy, the rule of law or human rights in Venezuela;

1. Strongly rejects the legitimacy of the results of the 28 July 2024 election due to the lack of transparency and minimum guarantees during the electoral process and the data aggregation, and strongly rejects Nicolás Maduro’s takeover of the office of President of Venezuela on 10 January 2025;

2. Calls on the Venezuelan electoral authorities to publish all voting records from the presidential elections of 28 July 2024, following their due verification by an independent entity, without further delay; calls on the Venezuelan authorities to respect the election results and the will of the Venezuelan people;

3. Stresses the importance of the self-determination of the Venezuelan people and the importance of a genuine expression of their democratic will;

4. Urges the Venezuelan authorities to ensure full respect for human rights, including the rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression; calls on the Venezuelan authorities to end the political persecution, repression and harassment of the opposition and of civil society;

5. Demands the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners and arbitrarily detained persons, including those with dual and foreign citizenship, and demands that their physical and psychological safety be guaranteed, that they be granted access to appropriate healthcare and medicines and to the lawyers of their choice, that they be allowed family visits without undue restrictions, that compensation be paid to them and their families, and that their full civil and political rights be restored; demands the immediate release of non-governmental organisation activist Alberto Trentini, who has been detained since 15 November 2024;

6. Calls on the Venezuelan authorities to respect international law and the Vienna Conventions on Diplomatic Relations and on Consular Relations; calls for the physical integrity and right to seek asylum of the five opposition members currently in the Argentinian Embassy to be guaranteed, and for them to be granted safe conduct under the 1954 Caracas Convention on Diplomatic Asylum; calls on the authorities to allow the International Committee of the Red Cross and/or the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to enter the embassy;

7. Urges the authorities to restore constitutional order and rebuild the separation of powers; calls on the military and security forces to strictly abide by their mandate, so that the military is able to play a constructive role in line with its constitutional duty;

8. Urges all sides to immediately enter into an inclusive and credible national dialogue aimed at finding a long-term and lasting solution to the Venezuelan crisis;

9. Supports all the efforts being made by the international community to find a peaceful, inclusive and democratic solution to the enduring Venezuelan crisis; underlines and welcomes the role that the governments of Brazil, Colombia and Mexico are playing in this regard;

10. Recognises the importance of the regional dimension in finding a solution that supports the Venezuelan people and allows the recovery of their economic and social prospects;

11. Welcomes the OHCHR’s return to Caracas; urges Venezuela to engage constructively and effectively with the OHCHR, the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Venezuela, the International Criminal Court and relevant regional mechanisms;

12. Calls for the EU to work with its international partners to ensure that the will of the Venezuelan people, as expressed at the ballot box, is respected and to guarantee respect for democracy and the rule of law;

13. Calls for the EU and its Member States to provide logistical and financial support to human rights defenders and civil society to help address the current humanitarian and socio-economic crisis, including by issuing visas to at-risk human rights defenders;

14. Fully supports the International Criminal Court’s investigations into the Venezuelan government and calls for the EU to continue supporting the investigations into alleged crimes against humanity;

15. Recalls that the situation of Venezuelan refugees and migrants demands long-term solutions; recognises the numerous efforts by neighbouring countries to provide not only food and housing, but also regular legal documentation, schooling and medical support, and invites EU actors to do the same with respect to all Venezuelan refugees and migrants; calls on the EU to expand access to asylum, legal pathways and other forms of international protection for Venezuelans leaving their country, in line with international standards;

16. Calls on the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and the Council to consider, in due time, renewing the targeted sanctions imposed through the EU Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime on all those responsible for repression and human rights violations in Venezuela; calls for the implementation of the EU targeted sanctions to be monitored closely to ensure that the EU has not adopted any measures that could harm Venezuela’s people or economy;

17. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and the Venezuelan authorities.