The bloc wants Maduro to hold new elections after last year’s vote is disputed. They meet after European nations this morning made a coordinated announcement to recognise rival Juan Guaido as leader. The UK, France, Austria, The Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden, Denmark and Spain all came out to support Guaido, to the fury of Maduro’s allies in Russia. In South America, the 14-nation Lima Group looked set to hold off imposing further sanctions on the Maduro government when it meets in Ottawa.
Most group members say Maduro should quit in favor of opposition leader Juan Guaido – who declared himself interim president last month – and are calling for a new presidential election in the troubled OPEC nation.
The United States, which is not a member of the group, also wants Maduro gone.
A Canadian government official said: “How can we continue to support the opposition to keep the pressure up on the regime and push for new elections? Certainly that’s something we’ll be looking at.”
Maduro, who has overseen an economic collapse and the exodus of millions of Venezuelans, said in an interview that aired on Spanish television channel Antena 3 on Sunday: “We don’t accept ultimatums from anyone,” adding: “I refuse to call for elections now – there will be elections in 2024.”
Maduro, who has maintained the critical support of the military, has said Guaido is staging a US-directed coup against him.
Today’s meeting in Ottawa will also discuss how to aid the people of Venezuela, including through immediate humanitarian assistance, the office of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.
Last month, the Lima Group announced a travel ban on senior Venezuelan officials and a freeze on their foreign assets.
The Canadian source, who requested anonymity given the sensitivity of the situation, declined to comment when asked whether more punitive measures could be imposed.
Two sources briefed on the talks said such an announcement was unlikely for now.
US President Donald Trump’s administration last week issued sanctions on Venezuelan state-owned oil firm PDVSA in a move likely to cut revenues for a country hit by medicine shortages and malnutrition.
Trump, in an interview that aired on Sunday, said military intervention in Venezuela was “an option.”
Trudeau spoke on Sunday to Guaido and the two “discussed the importance of the international community sending a clear message regarding the illegitimacy of the Maduro regime”, Trudeau’s office said.
The challenge for participants is that Mexico, a member of the Lima Group, opposes any measures to oust Maduro, who also has the backing of Russia, China and Turkey.
“The most important issue now is to get Europe in line and to deepen the isolation of Venezuela and its backers,” said a government official in Bogota, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
However, despite many members of the EU coming out in support of Guaido, Italy vetoed a joint declaration, branding it “meddling”.
Luigi Di Maio, Italy’s deputy Prime Minister, replied to Mr Guaido saying: “The change must be chosen by Venezuelans, we are on the side of peace and democracy, so we have to create the basis to favour new elections.
“Considering we have already been burnt by meddling in other state’s policies, we don’t want to recognise people who have not been voted.
“For this reason, we don’t back Maduro as well.”
Russia also accused European nations of meddling in the Venezuela crisis.
In response to the coordinated announcement this morning, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “We think that imposing some kind of decisions or trying to legitimise an attempt to usurp power is both direct and indirect interference in Venezuela’s internal affairs.”