MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Venezuelan FM says Brazil did invite Maduro over to Bolsonaro's inauguration

Arreaza pointed out that Maduro never intended to attend.

Venezuela Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza Sunday announced President Nicolás Maduro had been invited to the presidential inauguration of Jair Bolsonaro on January 1 in Brasilia.

 Arreaza posted those comments on Twitter following an entry from Bolsonaro's future chief diplomat Ernesto Araújo, who had claimed otherwise “out of respect for the Venezuelan people.”

Nevertheless, Arreaza pointed out that Maduro never intended to attend. “The Socialist, Revolutionary and Free Government of Venezuela would never attend the inauguration of a president who is the expression of intolerance, of fascism and of surrender to interests contrary to Latin American and Caribbean integration.”

That passage from Arreaza's response as well as the Brazilian invitation were displayed on Arreaza's Twitter account.

The Brazilian letter of invitation expressly indicated the Venezuelan head of state was to be welcome and should he not be able to make it, the customary note also mentions other possible dignitaries such as the can is represented by special mission-led “the vice-head of state or government, the foreign minister or the chief of that diplomatic mission,” according to the version published by Arreaza