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Talks between the Venezuelan government and the right-wing opposition will continue in the Dominican Republic next month with the aim of ending U.S. sanctions and "the violence coming from abroad."
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The announcement was made following Thursday’s meeting in Santo Domingo to discuss the next steps in establishing peaceful discussions between Venezuelan leaders and the nation's right-wing opposition.
The meeting was presided over by former Prime Minister of Spain Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero and Dominican President Danilo Medina, after which Dominican Foreign Minister Miguel Vargas announced that the next round of talks would take place on December 1 and 2.
Urging the international community to take an active interest in the peace process, Vargas said six foreign ministers would attend the meeting, including those from Mexico, Chile, Paraguay and Nicaragua.
Venezuelan Minister of Communications Jorge Rodriguez said he was satisfied with the discussions so far and insisted that "The people of Venezuela are at peace."
"No one can deny the infinite efforts of President Nicolas Maduro to convene the Venezuelan opposition to a process of dialogue," said Rodriguez.
"This is a dialogue between Venezuelans: between the Bolivarian Government of Venezuela and the Venezuelan opposition. Through dialogue, we will defeat the violence which is coming from abroad."
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U.S. sanctions against Venezuela will be one of the main topics of discussion during the December meeting, Rodriguez confirmed: "The end of the economic blockade will be one of the points elaborated in the next round of talks."
The government and the opposition created a commission made up of Bolivia, Chile, Mexico, and Nicaragua to follow up on the agreements reached in the first round of talks on the Caribbean island in September.
The talks have since been stalled by the opposition, which is in disarray following its losses in recent regional elections. The country is also preparing for municipal elections to be held in December.
Maduro has consistently called for dialogue with the opposition, initiating talks brokered by Pope Francis and Unasur. However, only a few factions within the right-wing Democratic Unity Roundtable coalition have accepted the invitation to sit with government officials.
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