International
Spain reduces the escalation of tension with Caracas in the midst of the diplomatic crisis
The Spanish Government chose this Friday to lower the escalation of tension between Caracas and Madrid and described as “sovereign” the decision of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to summon the Spanish ambassador to the country and call his representative in the Spanish capital for consultations.
“Convening an ambassador and calling for consultations are sovereign decisions of each State and therefore, there is nothing to comment on,” said the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, in an interview with the public broadcaster Radio Nacional.
Albares thus responded to Maduro’s decision to call his ambassador in Spain, Gladys Gutiérrez, for consultations and summon the Spanish ambassador in Caracas, Ramón Santos, for what he considers “insolent, interent and rude statements” made by the Spanish Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles.
The PP calls for the withdrawal of the Spanish ambassador in Caracas
On Thursday, Robles described the government of Nicolás Maduro as a “dictatorship” and referred to Venezuelans who have left their country as “victims of restriction, violence, lack of democracy and lack of freedom.”
Comments on which the Spanish Government has not spoken out, but which have been applauded by the right because they are “the pure truth,” in the words of the leader of the conservative Popular Party Esteban González Pons, who has come to ask for the withdrawal of the Spanish ambassador in Caracas.
The head of Spanish diplomacy insisted on the will of the Executive to seek “the best possible relations with the brotherly people of Venezuela” and to ensure the interests of the community and national companies in the South American country.
A message of tranquility to which the Minister of Economy, Carlos Cuerpo, joined, who guaranteed that the Spanish Government “will defend its interests in case this were necessary.”
Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Pablo García was also convinced, in statements to EFE, that the crisis will not worsen because “the Maduro regime is not interested in breaking relations with Spain or Spain with Venezuela.”
“The diplomatic crisis is nothing more than a way to divert attention from what is really important, that is, the need for Spain to recognize Edmundo González as elected president,” said García, a member of the leadership of the Vente Venezuela (VV) movement.
Spain and the EU insist on the election minutes
The escalation of tension between Caracas and Madrid comes after the President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, received on Thursday the flag bearer of the Venezuelan opposition Edmundo González Urrutia, who has asked for political asylum in Spain.
Sánchez will not recognize, for the moment, González Urrutia as elected president of Venezuela, as requested by the Spanish Congress, which this week approved the proposal at the request of the conservative Popular Party, the far right and nationalist groups.
Aligned with Brussels, Sánchez insists that Maduro must show the minutes of the July 28 elections that, according to the Venezuelan opposition, accredit the defeat of Chavismo.
At a press conference in Madrid, the high representative for EU Foreign Policy, the Spaniard Josep Borrell, recalled that the community bloc cannot recognize Governments or States because it is a power of the Member States, but what it can do is “recognize the democratic legitimacy of those who hold power, territorial control, the army, the police …”.
That control, “in fact, was Maduro’s before the elections and still Maduro’s after the elections. But we do not consider him a person who can claim democratic legitimacy from the power he holds,” he added.
Venezuela warns that it will not allow “interference”
The Foreign Minister of Venezuela, Yván Gil, told the Spanish ambassador in Caracas that the Caribbean country will not allow “any intervention action by the Government of Spain in matters that are the exclusive competence of Venezuelans.”
“The Government of Venezuela will adopt the necessary measures, within the framework of international law and Bolivarian diplomacy of peace to protect its sovereignty,” says the foreign minister’s note shared on Telegram.
For his part, the former president of Bolivia Evo Morales, an ally of the Maduro government, condemned the pronouncement of the Spanish Parliament that “medles in the internal affairs of Venezuela” and regretted that Spain “becomes a refuge of the Latin American right that continues to conspire against democracies” in the region.
“They have to realize that we are not in Cologne times. Spain does not have the authority to ignore any president,” he wrote on the social network X.
Pressure on Maduro is growing
Since his arrival in Madrid on Sunday, González Urrutia has maintained a low profile, although he has multiplied his political contacts with meetings such as those held this Friday with former presidents Mariano Rajoy (PP) and Felipe González (socialist).
While from the ranks of the Spanish right the pressure increases to act against Maduro: The PP trusts that next week the European Parliament will recognize Edmundo González as the winner of the elections and the far-right Vox asks the Government to seize property of members of the Venezuelan regime of Nicolás Maduro in Spain.
International pressure is growing on Venezuela after the sanctions announced on Thursday by the United States against 16 officials, including members of the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ), the National Electoral Council (CNE) and Parliament, for “falsely” proclaiming Maduro as the winner of the July elections.
In the same vein, Borrell called for specific sanctions to be applied to Maduro and his inner circle, his families and all those responsible for human rights violations in the country.
International
Meta Says Russia Seeks to Ban WhatsApp for Defending Secure Communication
U.S. tech giant Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, said that Russia is seeking to ban the messaging app because it “challenges government attempts to violate people’s right to secure communication.”
Russian authorities have encouraged citizens to switch to state-backed applications, and in August they already blocked WhatsApp’s calling feature.
On Friday, the communications regulator Roskomnadzor claimed that the platform was being used to “organize and carry out terrorist acts in the country, recruit perpetrators, and facilitate fraud and other crimes.”
“If the messaging service does not comply with Russian law, it will be completely blocked,” the regulator warned.
WhatsApp remains one of Russia’s most widely used messaging services, alongside Telegram.
Moscow is pressuring both platforms to grant authorities access to user data upon request for investigations into fraud and activities the government labels as “terrorist.”
Human rights advocates fear the demand could be used to target critics of the Kremlin, President Vladimir Putin, or the war in Ukraine.
International
Archbishop Wenski criticizes Trump’s deportation policies, calls for stronger push for reform
The Archbishop of Miami, Thomas Wenski, has called for increased pressure on the U.S. Congress to advance comprehensive immigration reform and criticized President Donald Trump’s mass deportation policies, arguing that they “do nothing to help.”
“We need to apply more pressure on Congress so lawmakers can make the necessary changes. It is also important for the Administration to listen to our voice. We do not want to be anyone’s enemy—we are Americans,” Wenski said in an interview with EFE.
The religious leader, who heads one of the dioceses with the largest Latino and Haitian populations in the United States, issued a call to defend the rights of migrants. He also emphasized that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has maintained a strong and public stance in favor of migrants for decades.
International
Trump relaunches diplomatic push to finalize U.S.-Backed peace plan for Ukraine War
U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that his diplomatic team will resume meetings with delegations from Russia and Ukraine in an effort to pressure both sides to accept the peace plan proposed by Washington to end the war in Ukraine.
As part of this new round of talks, U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff will travel to Moscow to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Meanwhile, Army Secretary Dan Driscoll will hold discussions with Ukrainian representatives to narrow differences on the remaining points of the agreement.
Trump also confirmed his intention to meet personally with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and with Putin, though he emphasized that such meetings will only take place “when the agreement is fully finalized or in its final stage.”
The president claimed that his administration has made “tremendous progress” toward resolving the conflict and reiterated that the war “never would have started” if he had been in the White House at the onset of the crisis.
The U.S.-backed peace plan consists of 28 points and has been revised following feedback from both sides. According to Trump, only “a few points of disagreement” remain under active discussion.
One of the most controversial aspects of the proposal is the suggestion that Ukraine cede parts of the Donbas region to Russia and limit the size of its armed forces. Kyiv is working closely with Washington to soften these clauses in search of an arrangement that does not compromise its sovereignty or security.
With this diplomatic push, Trump aims to solidify his role as the main mediator in the conflict and steer the war toward a political resolution after years of devastation, humanitarian crisis, and rising global geopolitical tensions.
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