Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro will not attend the inauguration of Brazilian President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and will be replaced by the president of the Venezuelan National Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez.
As reported by the newspaper ‘O Globo’, the visit was cancelled on the night of Saturday 31 when Maduro’s security guards were already in Brasilia. Although the Brazilian Foreign Ministry has informed of the change, no further details about Maduro’s absence have been provided.
The government of Jair Bolsonaro lifted on Friday the measure prohibiting the Venezuelan president from entering Brazil, a text that appeared in the Official Journal of the Union signed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carlos França, and by the head of Justice, Antonio Ramirez Lorenzo.
The outgoing president of Brazil recognizes the opposition leader Juan Guaidó as the legitimate president of Venezuela, but his successor had already made it clear that he would open a new chapter in relations with Caracas, which will foreseeably result in the short term in the appointment of a new ambassador.
In fact, Maduro already went ahead a few days ago by appointing a new ambassador in Brasilia, in an attempt to resume relations similar to that already undertaken by Venezuela earlier this year with the coming to power of Gustavo Petro in Colombia.
President-elect Lula will take office this Sunday in a ceremony attended by more than a dozen heads of state and government, including King Felipe VI, who will be accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares, and the Second Vice-President and Minister of Labor, Yolanda Díaz.
The program includes several concerts in the esplanade of the ministries. Lula will make his way around 2.30 p.m. (local time) to the Cathedral of Brasilia accompanied by his wife and mounted in a car in procession, heavily guarded by a large police escort.
Depending on security conditions, the trip will be made in the traditional Rolls-Royce convertible or in an armored vehicle. The Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith model was first used by former president Getúlio Vargas in 1953, as reported by the newspaper ‘Folha de S.Paolo’.
Lula and his vice-president, Geraldo Alckmin, will arrive at Congress and park at around 2.40 p.m. (local time) in front of the main ramp, where they will be received by the presidents of the Senate, Rodrigo Pacheco, and of the House, Arthur Lira.
Afterwards, Lula and Alckmin will leave for the Planalto Palace, the seat of the Brazilian executive branch, where he will deliver a speech to the nation, the presidential sash will be placed on him and the appointment of ministers will take place.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
