Argentina Withdraws Recognition of Guaido’s Venezuela Envoy
(Bloomberg) — The Argentine government withdrew credentials for the representative of Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido, reversing the previous administration’s stance toward its South American neighbor.
Argentina’s Foreign Ministry sent a two-sentence letter to Elisa Trotta Gamus, the Guaido-backed ambassador to Argentina, informing her that it was “putting an end to your special mission in the Argentine Republic.” Trotta Gamus’s spokeswoman confirmed the letter, which was first reported by Argentine newspaper La Nacion.
The decision didn’t surprise Guaido.
“Nothing that we didn’t expect, we knew the country’s ‘neutral’ position,” said Guaido. “We still hope that Argentina supports freedom and democracy.”
The ruling coalition of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro recently attempted to remove Guaido as leader of the opposition-led National Assembly. On Tuesday, Guaido dramatically stormed past guards to take back the legislature.
READ: Argentina’s New Government Walks a Fine Line on Venezuela Crisis
Trotta Gamus, who met with and was recognized as the legitimate ambassador last year by former President Mauricio Macri, said she respected President Alberto Fernandez’s decision to remove her credentials. But she said in a statement she hopes his government will continue denouncing the Maduro regime.
The move is another twist in Fernandez’s balancing act on Venezuela policy, which could hold major implications for Argentina’s relationship with the U.S. and its record $56 billion IMF agreement.
(Updates with Guaido comments in fourth; Guaido actions in Caracas Tuesday in fifth paragraph)
–With assistance from Alex Vasquez.
To contact the reporter on this story: Patrick Gillespie in Buenos Aires at [email protected]
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Juan Pablo Spinetto at [email protected], Robert Jameson
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