Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido is currently recognized by many countries, including the United Kingdom and the United States, as the legitimate president of Venezuela. Now, he won a court battle in the U.K. against the current Venezuelan government under rival President Nicolas Maduro. 

The case was about who had the right to Venezuela's gold held by the Bank of England. According to the Associated Press, the court win takes him a step closer to victory in his current battle against Maduro, who defeated Guaido in what many considered to be rigged and invalid elections back in 2018.

U.K. Court Does Not Recognize Venezuelan Supreme Court Ruling on the Gold

The Banco Central de Venezuela currently has two rival boards. One was appointed by the current government under Nicolas Maduro, and Juan Guaido appointed the other. 

Both sides are battling to secure the release of over 800 million pounds worth of gold currently held within the vaults of the Bank of England.

Venezuela's Supreme Court, the Supreme Tribunal of Justice of Venezuela, previously ruled that the gold held at the Bank of England should go to Maduro.

However, since the Bank of England is under the United Kingdom and its government recognizes Guaido as the president of Venezuela, the bank refused to hand any gold to the Maduro government. This led to the long and drawn-out court battle between the current Venezuelan government and the Venezuelan government recognized by the United Kingdom.

According to NBC News, a London High Court judge ruled that British courts need not recognize the judgments of the Venezuelan Supreme Court. In addition, Judge Sara Cockerill added that there was also no basis in recognizing another Venezuelan Supreme Court decision that deemed Guaido's bank board appointments unconstitutional.

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Juan Guaido, Nicolas Maduro Camps Release Statements Regarding Court Ruling

Shortly after the decision, Juan Guaido released a statement and said this benefits the Venezuelan people as it protects Venezuela's sovereign gold reserves.

Meanwhile, Maduro board lawyer Sarosh Zaiwalla noted that the ruling is unfortunate as the issue rested on the recognition of foreign judgments. The Venezuelan Central bank also released a statement complaining that the British Court subordinated itself to British foreign policy and violated international law.

However, CNN reported that Guaido's board will not be allowed to access the gold until the legal dispute is fully resolved. Maduro's board has considered appealing the ruling.

The dispute started in 2019 when then-Venezuelan National Assembly president Guaido swore himself in as interim leader of Venezuela. Maduro won the elections amid staggering human abuse allegations, a worsening economy, and claims of election fraud.

Over 50 countries recognized Juan Guaido as the true winner of the elections and the real president of Venezuela. One of his first moves was to take control of the Venezuelan assets abroad, which led to the two rival National Bank boards. The Venezuelan Supreme Court ruled for Nicolas Maduro, but the Bank of England, which held the gold reserves, sided with the opposition.

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This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

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