Edmundo González landed in Spain after the Venezuelan government issued his arrest warrant.
According to CNN, the Venezuelan opposition leader along with his wife and Spanish officials landed at the Torrejon de Ardoz military air base in Madrid on Sunday, September 8, following the unrest after July’s disputed presidential elections.
In an audio message, González said, “(He is) confident that soon we will continue the fight to achieve freedom and the recovery of democracy in Venezuela."
After arriving in Spain, he thanked his supporters for their solidarity and asserted, “My departure from Caracas was surrounded by episodes of pressure, coercion, and threats that I wouldn’t be allowed to leave."
The Venezuelan government has accused González of terrorism, conspiracy, forging documents, and other ‘serious crimes’ following the turmoil due to controversial elections that declared President Nicolás Maduro, which was denied by the opposition and the international community.
Meanwhile, Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez claimed that Gonzalez had left the country for the ‘sake of the tranquillity and political peace of the country.’
US Reacts To Edmundo González Departure
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, in a statement on Sunday, called González’s departure a ‘result of the anti-democratic measures.’
The US secretary stated, “The election results and the will of the people cannot be merely swept aside by Maduro and the Venezuelan electoral authorities. We stand with González Urrutia in his call to continue the struggle for liberty and the restoration of democracy in Venezuela.”
