Caracas Chronicles

• Gustavo Petro’s victory in Colombia has kept chavismo busy with messages of support. Most chavista leaders foresee a change in the relationship with Colombia, Freddy Bernal talked about how much commerce in the area will grow. The Foreign Ministry published a statement full of spelling mistakes where they said they were willing to work on a “renewed era of integral relations.” Diosdado Cabello assured this victory drastically changes the relations with Venezuela. People in social media are doubtful and concerned about the fates of 1.8 million Venezuelan refugees and migrants, including those who were persecuted in Venezuela. Petro has been an ally to the regime, but in his previous campaign he assured that Nicolás was a dictator. Colombia holds the largest community of Venezuelan migrants since the mass migration started due to the humanitarian emergency. So far, Petro has retweeted messages from leaders all across the region and international news outlets but hasn’t shared one message from chavista officials. A message in itself? 
• Diosdado Cabello assured that they’re in contact with authorities to solve the issue with the Iranian-Venezuelan Boeing 747 that’s been in Argentina for 14 days. The Argentinian justice system continues investigating details on the Iranian crew. The FBI described the pilot, Gholarmreza Ghasemi, as a terrorist with ties to Al-Quds and Hezbollah. Uruguay responded to the regime’s criticism and said that “it’s his [Maduro’s] opinion, which, in this case, doesn’t affect us. We are a sovereign nation and we make our decisions,” said Foreign Minister Francisco Bustillo. 

The price of the basic food basket was $478 in May, reported Cendas-FVM. They emphasized minimum wage is $28.07 and only covers 5% of basic products. Pensioners protested today near Miraflores Palace and assured they’ll stay in the street until their demands are met: pensions that allow for a dignified life. 

• Eight out of ten people who applied for asylum in Brazil are Venezuelan, reported the Brazilian Justice Ministry. Out of 29,107 applications, 22,856 (78.5%) were from Venezuelan citizens. 
• A court in Caracas subpoenaed former San Cristóbal mayor Daniel Ceballos to reopen the trial against him for the 2014 protests. Even though TSJ sentenced Ceballos to a year in prison for allowing protests, he spent four years in centers like Ramo Verde and El Helicoide. 
• The Norwegian Foreign Ministry reported that delegations of the opposition and the regime will attend the Oslo Forum, an event centered around conflict mediation, offering hope that the negotiation process will restart. It’s the first formal event both delegations are attending since October 2021, when the regime left the negotiation in Mexico.  
• The president of the commission against corruption of Maduro’s National Assembly, Alexis Rodríguez, said that the new reform of the Anti-Corruption Law includes modifications that entail criminal charges: prison, fines and seizing assets. This gives context to an announcement: they approved an investigation against former Anzoátegui governor Antonio Barreto Sira.
• Maduro announced the creation of a vice presidency for science and technology. Gabriela Jiménez, who was the Technology minister, was appointed. 

Lawyer Tamara Suju denounced that political prisoner Matthew Heath is “hospitalized at the Military Hospital, after a suicide attempt.” She emphasized that Heath has been a victim of torture. 

• Regarding the Russian blockade of Ukrainian ports, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell accused Moscow of a war crime, blocking exports of Ukrainian wheat, which he thinks is a “deliberate act to create a famine in the world.” The European Council is starting to prepare to incorporate Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine into the EU this week, since foreign ministers in the EU expressed they favor Ukraine’s membership. German chancellor Olaf Scholz assured that Putin is afraid that “the spark of democracy” spreads in Russia.