ICG welcomes Oslo's announcement about upcoming 2nd round of Intra-Venezuelan talks
Moscow, May 26 (Sputnik): The International Contact Group (ICG) on Venezuela welcomed on Sunday Norway's announcement about its plans to host another round of consultations between the Venezuelan government and opposition in a bid to establish dialogue and peacefully resolve the political crisis in the Latin American country.
On Saturday, the Norwegian Foreign Ministry announced that the second round of consultations would be held in the Norwegian capital next week.
"The International Contact Group (ICG) welcomes the continuation of the Norwegian facilitated negotiation process between the Venezuelan political actors. The ICG reaffirms its commitment to a political, peaceful and democratic solution through free and fair elections and stands ready to provide support to the ongoing efforts as appropriate," the press service said in a statement.
Last week, Oslo confirmed that Norway was playing a facilitating role in the negotiations between Venezuela's main political forces after the first round of consultations was held in the capital on May 16. Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido said, however, that the sides were not engaged in negotiations, adding that the meeting in Oslo was simply Norway's attempt to act as a mediator.
Venezuela has been suffering from a severe political crisis since late January, when US-backed Guaido illegally proclaimed himself interim president in a bid to oust President Nicolas Maduro since the opposition did not recognize his re-election last year.
Dozens of countries around the world have endorsed Guaido, and called on Maduro to step down and for a new election to be organized. China, Russia, Turkey and numerous others have, in turn, voiced their support for Maduro as Venezuela's legitimate president.
The ICG was established soon after the eruption of the political crisis to help create conditions for a new election in Venezuela in line with the country's constitution.
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