U.S. Pressure Venezuelan Government for Democratic Reforms

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to engage in dialogue with the opposition following a disputed election. He emphasized the need for an inclusive, Venezuelan-led process to restore democracy. Western governments claim electoral fraud, and the U.S. calls for an end to repression and release of detained activists.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday called for Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to engage in dialogue with the opposition following Venezuela's contested election, adding that the U.S. was ready to support such a process. "We come here united in the commitment to defend the human rights of the Venezuelan people and committed to bring about an inclusive Venezuelan-led effort to restore the nation's democratic future," Blinken said at an event on Venezuela on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

"That means insisting that Maduro engage in a direct dialogue with Venezuela's united democratic opposition that leads to a peaceful return to democracy. The United States and its partners stand fully ready to support this process." Electoral officials and the top court declared President Nicolas Maduro the winner of the July 28 election with 52% of the vote. But the opposition says voting machine receipts show a landslide victory for their candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez.

Some Western governments, including the United States, have alleged electoral fraud. A United Nations report last week alleged escalating government repression since the election, including the arrest of minors. The government has rejected the claims.

Blinken said sustaining pressure in the months leading up to the January presidential inauguration was crucial, saying the U.S. and its partners must continue to call on Maduro's government to stop repressing peaceful protesters and political opponents and unconditionally release those arbitrarily detained. "We must use all tools at our disposal to hold accountable the individuals who bear the highest responsibility for the grave human rights abuses being committed against the Venezuelan people, as the United States has done and will continue to do," Blinken said.

"We cannot be satisfied only with joint statements. We have to take joint action. That's the only way to change Maduro's calculus and his behavior." Argentina's Foreign Minister Diana Mondino at the event warned that the election in Venezuela has consequences for many countries.

"There are winds, authoritarian winds, blowing in our continent, and let's hope it does not become a hurricane," she said.

(With inputs from agencies.)