MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Venezuela denies safe-conducts to asylum seekers in Argentine embassy

“There are no safe-conducts for those who do not love this homeland,” Cabello stressed

Venezuela's regime Wednesday denied Argentina's request for safe-conducts whereby six dissidents housed in the diplomatic mission in Caracas would be able to reach the airport and take a flight to Buenos Aires, government strongman Diosdado Cabello confirmed while calling Argentine President Javier Milei a “fascist.”

“They are not going to pressure us. Today I think the answer of the Venezuelan government came out: denied. There are no safe-conducts for those who do not love this homeland. The government of the fascist that governs Argentina believes that it is going to pressure us, that it is going to pressure Venezuela,” Cabello argued during a TV appearance in a show of his own.

He also described Milei as a ”guy so coward that he already decided to hand over the Malvinas to the United Kingdom (...) Because he is a subordinate to the imperial powers. Here in Venezuela we do not subordinate ourselves to the imperial powers. We have not done it and we never will.”

The future of the six refugees now hangs in the balance. Milei's request to send a team of Border Guard officers to reinforce security at the embassy was turned down by the government of President Nicolás Maduro. Argentina's Embassy is under surveillance by the Bolivarian National Intelligence Service (SEBIN).

On March 27, Argentina welcomed six refugees at its mission in Caracas pursuant to its inviolability as per the Vienna Convention. Activists Magalli Meda, Pedro Urruchurtu, Claudia Macero, Humberto Villalobos, Omar González, and Fernando Martínez Motolla are accused by the Maduro government of alleged acts of destabilization and conspiracy. Before turning up at the diplomatic mission they had been hiding to avoid arrest.

In this scenario, diplomatic relations between the two countries have taken a turn for the worse. In addition, Argentina urged Maduro to “call transparent and free elections” and to put an end to the political persecution of opposition leaders.

The six asylum seekers belong to banned opposition leader María Corina Machado's political force.