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By BBC Monitoring
POLITICAL ISSUES
GOVERNMENT
President Nicolas Maduro sets four conditions for dialogue in Mexico President Nicolas Maduro set four conditions for holding talks with the opposition in Mexico, Venezolana de Television Online reported on 12 July. They included: (1) the end of all sanctions imposed on Venezuela by the United States and the EU; (2) the recognition by the opposition of all the authorities and political institutions of the country; (3) avoiding violence as a coercion mechanism used by certain elements of the opposition and the extreme right to go to the dialogue table in Mexico with the support of Norway; and (4) all political sectors that wish to do so joining the talks to achieve a grand peace agreement
Defence Minister criticises 'disguised' opposition political parties
Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez said that the National Bolivarian Armed Forces (FANB) were rejecting political factions "disguised" as political parties that would seek to gain political power through unconstitutional means, Ultimas Noticias Online reported on 13 July. He also reaffirmed the Venezuelan military's "firm commitment" to preserving national peace and stability.
President Maduro expresses support for Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel
President Nicolas Maduro expressed his support for Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel in the wake of the mass antigovernment protests in the island country, El Universal Online reported on 13 July. At a meeting at Miraflores Palace with opposition figures, he said: "If the United States and the extremist opponents in Cuba really want to alleviate and help the Cuban people, let them immediately lift all sanctions and the blockade against the Cuban people".
Supreme Court upholds extradition request for dissident military officer