Spanish prime minister meets with exiled Venezuelan opposition leader González

MADRID (AP) — Venezuela's opposition presidential candidate Edmundo González met with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on Thursday, four days after fleeing to the European country in a negotiated deal with Nicolás Maduro's government.

González's flight to exile — after weeks of seeking refuge in the embassies of the Netherlands and Spain in Caracas — had dealt a major blow to millions who placed their hopes in his opposition campaign.

His supporters in Venezuela and beyond, along with the United States government, consider him the legitimate winner of the July 28 presidential election.

Sánchez, who was on a trip to China when González arrived, posted a video of their meeting Thursday on the social media platform X. The two are seen strolling together in the Moncloa Palace gardens in Madrid.

Spain has welcomed González as a sign of its “humanitarian commitment and solidarity with Venezuelans,” Sánchez said in his post.

González also posted on X, thanking Sánchez for his work “for the recovery of democracy and respect for human rights” in Venezuela, and promised he will “continue the struggle to enforce the sovereign will of the Venezuelan people”.

On Wednesday, the Spanish Parliament approved a proposal from the conservative Popular Party urging Sánchez's left-wing coalition government to recognise the opposition leader as the elected president of Venezuela. The motion is non-binding.

Spain's government supports the European Union position of demanding that Maduro make public the raw polling results before the bloc recognises a winner.

The European Parliament will debate the outcome of the Venezuelan elections on Tuesday in Strasbourg, France.

González's arrival has further strained relations between Madrid and Caracas. On Wednesday, Jorge Rodríguez, president of Venezuela's National Assembly, asked for “the immediate rupture of all diplomatic relations, of all commercial relations”.

Follow The Gleaner on X, formerly Twitter, and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com.