The Venezuelan government has ordered the closure of its border with Colombia and restricted airspace for 72 hours, citing an alleged "international conspiracy" to destabilize the country as Nicolás Maduro claims a contested third term in office and opposition leader Edmundo González Urrutia has vowed to assume the presidency as well, claiming he, not Maduro, won the presidential elections back on July 28.
The announcement comes a day after opposition leader María Corina Machado reappeared in public after months in hiding, was apprehended and later released amid intense protests in the capital of Caracas and the rest of the country.
The closure, effective from 5 a.m. Friday until Monday morning, was announced by Freddy Bernal, the governor of Táchira, a border state with Colombia.Bernal stated that intelligence from neighboring Colombia suggested plans to disrupt peace in Venezuela's border region ahead of the inauguration:
"It has cost us greatly in this beautiful land of Táchira to ensure security and peace, a state that for many years was under siege by Colombian paramilitary groups (...) Rest assured that we have absolute control of the State and will guarantee, under any circumstances, the tranquility and peace of all the people of Táchira"
#Atención Venezuela anunció el cierre de sus fronteras con Colombia desde las 5:00 a. m. de este viernes 10 de enero hasta las 5:00 a. m. del lunes 13 de enero, de acuerdo con Freddy Bernal, gobernador del Táchira, por sospechas de una conspiración internacional para perturbar la… pic.twitter.com/MDL4iSGF0o
— BluRadio Colombia (@BluRadioCo) January 10, 2025
Colombia's foreign ministry confirmed the closure as a unilateral decision communicated through diplomatic channels, adding that Colombia's border remains open. "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Colombia was informed yesterday by the Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, through the appropriate diplomatic channels, that they will unilaterally close the border with Colombia and their airspace for 72 hours starting from 5:00 a.m. today, January 10, 2025, due to internal reasons."
El Ministerio de Relaciones de Colombia fue informado ayer por parte del Gobierno de la República Bolivariana de Venezuela, a través de los debidos canales diplomáticos, que de manera unilateral y por razones internas, cerrarán la frontera con Colombia y su espacio aéreo por 72…
— Cancillería Colombia (@CancilleriaCol) January 10, 2025
Venezuela has been immersed in political turmoil since last July's presidential elections which have been widely criticized as neither free nor fair. The United States, European Union, and several Latin American nations recognize González as the legitimate winner, while allies like Russia and China support Maduro.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro, a leftist leader and former ally of Maduro, has refused to attend the inauguration, citing human rights violations and lack of transparency in the electoral process.
"We cannot recognize elections that were not free, and we hope that they can be held soon without internal blockades or intimidation," Petro emphasized on Wednesday, condemning recent detentions of Venezuelan opposition figures such as former presidential candidate Enrique Márquez and journalist Carlos Correa.
González Urrutia has also declared nine former Latin American presidents have vowed to accompany him on his journey into Venezuela. They have been declared not welcome by the regime, which has accused them of attempting to interfere in Venezuela's sovereignty.
Originally published on Latin Times
