Maduro's rival leaves Venezuela and goes to Spain

Edmundo Gonzalez, accused of several crimes in Venezuela, has been granted free exit from the country

Venezuelan opposition leader Edmundo González, President Nicolás Maduro's main rival in the recent presidential elections, has left the country for Spain, where he is expected to be granted political asylum.

The 75-year-old politician was flown out of the country on Sunday in a Spanish Air Force plane. González has already requested political asylum in Spain and Madrid will “of course” grant him asylum, said Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares.

Caracas said the politician had been granted free passage despite being accused of several crimes “for the sake of calm and political peace in the country,” said Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez. Before his departure was agreed, the politician had been staying in the Spanish embassy for an indefinite period as a “voluntary refugee,” she said in a statement.

Gonzalez went into hiding shortly after the presidential election in July. According to official figures from the National Electoral Council, Maduro won with 52 percent of the vote. However, the opposition accused Caracas of electoral fraud and claimed that Gonzalez was the real winner with 67 percent of the vote.

The opposition candidate was supported by the US, the EU and several other countries, which did not recognise Maduro's victory. Other countries, including China and Russia, supported the elected president and recognised the election results.

In early September, Venezuelan authorities issued an arrest warrant for the opposition leader, accusing González of numerous crimes, including incitement to violate the law, forgery, abuse of office, conspiracy, criminal association and sabotage.

This development comes as six Venezuelan opposition figures remain holed up in the Argentine embassy in Caracas, with the facility surrounded by local security forces. Venezuela and Argentina severed diplomatic relations immediately after the presidential election, as Buenos Aires quickly questioned its outcome.

The embassy compound was administered by Brazil, which was authorized to represent its interests in the country. But on Saturday, Caracas revoked the authorization, citing evidence that the embassy was being used as a base for an alleged “magnicide” plan: an assassination attempt on Maduro or Rodriguez. Caracas did not elaborate on the evidence it received, while Brazil said the decision was “surprising” and reiterated its intention to represent Argentina's interests.

“The Brazilian government stresses in this context that, according to the Vienna Conventions, the facilities of the Argentine diplomatic mission are inviolable, where, in addition to assets and archives, six Venezuelan asylum seekers are currently housed,” the Brazilian authorities said in a statement.

(RT.com)