President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, has formally written to, and extended an invitation for dialogue to Caricom’s Chairman and Prime Minister of Grenada, Dr the Right Honourable Keith Mitchell.
In a letter dated 7 July 2017, and received by Grenada’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and subsequently by Prime Minister Mitchell, President Maduro expressed that he “wholeheartedly welcomes the valuable proposal contained in that Communiqué offering the Good Offices of [Caricom] to reactivate an agenda of constructive dialogue among the political sectors of [our] country.”
In that regard, President Maduro invited the Prime Minister to a work meeting in Caracas, Venezuela on 11 or 12 July to determine a specific plan of action to resume the national dialogue in Venezuela.
Regrettably, the Caricom Chairman received the letter on 13 July, and missed the dates stated in the invitation. New dates are being determined between Caricom and the Government of Venezuela to facilitate the visit.
The Venezuelan Foreign Minister was in Grenada during the Caricom Heads of Government Meeting and met with several leaders individually, including Prime Minister Mitchell, on the margins of the Plenary Session on Thursday, 6 July.
Already, in the wake of the 38th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of Caricom held in Grenada last week, 4 to 6 July, Prime Minister Mitchell has moved to activate the decision of the Caricom Heads to write to President Maduro as well as the leaders of all Opposition Political Parties in Venezuela, informing them of Caricom’s position on the Venezuela crisis and their offer to act as mediators to facilitate dialogue and a peaceful outcome.
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