The United States and Venezuela have once again reopened negotiations after the US reimposed sanctions against Venezuela over dictator Nicolas Maduro breaking his promise of conducting free and fair elections in the country, including allowing banned candidates to run for president.

Negotiations broke down as soon as the Maduro-aligned Supreme Court decided to uphold the ban on the united opposition coalition's leader and the election's previous presidential frontrunner, Maria Corina Machado, from holding office.

Venezuela's chief negotiator Jorge Rodriguez confirmed that the two sides began talking again on Wednesday, with Washington revealing that it urged the Maduro regime to ensure that elections scheduled for July 28 will be "competitive and inclusive."

Rodriguez stated that the meeting was virtual and that both countries agreed to work on improving their complicated relationship and maintaining "constructive and respectful" communication, according to Reuters.

Meanwhile, the US has expressed concern about whether or not Maduro will follow through with his promises this time and ensure a free and fair presidential election. Polls in Venezuela have shown that the dictator is currently far behind in the polls against Edmundo Gonzalez, a veteran ex-diplomat who now serves as Machado's replacement after her disqualification was upheld.

The US has accused the Maduro regime of breaking its promise to not just the US but also the Venezuelan opposition. This led to the US reimposing oil sanctions against Venezuela. For his part, Maduro has stated that he had already accepted a US proposal to resume direct talks.

"We discussed a wide range of issues and continued to urge competitive and inclusive elections on July 28 in Venezuela," revealed a White House National Security Council spokesperson regarding the Wednesday meeting.

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UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Urges Venezuela for 'Free and Open Space for Debate'

It is not just the US that is urging Venezuela, a country now infamous for human rights violations and forcing its populace to flee en masse, to clean up its act, but also the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk.

"My Office continues to receive reports of detentions as election day approaches, including of supporters and members of the opposition," he said. "This does not augur well, and I urge a change to such practices."

Nicolas Maduro on the Defensive as Venezuela Elections Loom

As for Maduro himself, his oppressive tactics may have come back to haunt him as he currently trails Edmundo Gonzalez in the polls. The infamous dictator has been speculated to have previously won via cheating, and many are afraid that he would do so again, allegedly.

His oppressive tactics have forced the opposition to campaign mostly via social media, but still, the opposition has pressed the offensive as Machado has campaigned for her replacement vigorously, showing that despite the repression, Maduro may be booted from power should he keep his promise to have the elections be free and fair.

"Never before has the opposition enjoyed such a gap in a presidential election," John Magdaleno, a political scientist and director of the Polity consulting group, told Reuters. Despite this, doubts still linger, given Maduro's tendencies.

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This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

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