Spain, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Uruguay jointly condemn the attack on Venezuela.

BarcelonaThe balance and ambiguity of much of the international community, including the European Union, has small cracks: some countries are now joining forces to criticize the United States' attack on Venezuela. Spanish President Pedro Sánchez was one of the most forceful in recent hours, and on Sunday afternoon, his government signed a joint statement with several other American states rejecting "the military actions carried out unilaterally on Venezuelan territory." Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Uruguay, along with Spain, expressed "deep concern and rejection" of the situation provoked by the Donald Trump administration. According to the statement, the six countries emphasize that the actions of the United States "contravene fundamental principles of international law, in particular the prohibition of the use and threat of force, and respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states." They also expressed their concern about "any attempt at governmental control, administration, or external appropriation of natural or strategic resources." Trump has not hidden the US interest in overseeing the transition in Venezuela and in the country's oil reserves.

Earlier that morning, Sánchez had already sent a letter to PSOE members in which he "unequivocally" condemned the US attack and linked it to the policies of the "far-right international." In fact, the Spanish president positioned Spain as "the greatest counterweight" to the extreme right and "one of the few voices that still firmly defend peace."

Carta de Sánchez a la militància del PSOE

The European Union has so far limited itself to calling for "restraint" and respect for the principles of international law and the UN Charter, through its High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas. For her part, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, emphasized after the US attack that the EU "stands with the people of Venezuela" and supports "a peaceful and democratic transition." Some European leaders, however, have directly celebrated the operation. One of them is French President Emmanuel Macron, who on Saturday applauded the fall of "the Nicolás Maduro dictatorship" and said he hopes that Edmundo González Urrutia "can ensure the transition as soon as possible." In his letter to party members, Sánchez insisted on the importance of maintaining a progressive government in Spain and his commitment to serving out his term.

Feijóo celebrates the defeat of "evil"

Opposition leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo was among the last Spanish politicians to take a stance on Maduro's arrest. His initial reaction, like Sánchez's, was rather lukewarm, but unlike the Spanish president, Feijóo has gradually radicalized his position in the opposite direction (in fact, he has criticized Sánchez's complicity with Maduro). This Sunday, he also used a letter, which he made public to X, to openly defend the fall of the Venezuelan government. "An evil has been defeated," the PP leader emphasizes, celebrating Maduro's arrest. Although he supports respecting international law, Feijóo excuses the Trump administration, stressing that "before anyone else, it was the [Chavista] regime itself that disregarded the rule of law." "Dictatorships aren't overthrown halfway," Feijóo continued, insisting that it should now be up to Edmundo González, whom he considers the true winner of the 2024 Venezuelan elections, and María Corina Machado to lead the transition. Feijóo criticized the possibility of allowing Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro's vice president, to govern, because she represents "the darkest past" of Venezuela.