EU and 22 countries call for 'impartial verification' of Venezuelan elections

In a joint statement, the European Union and 22 countries called for an "impartial verification" of the election outcome in Venezuela's presidential elections, widely questioned after Nicolas Maduro was declared reelected for a third consecutive six-year term.

The declaration was released in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, by the Dominican Minister of Foreign Affairs. The Venezuelan opposition and several countries in the international community have denounced electoral fraud and demanded that voting records be presented for independent verification.

The National Electoral Council (CNE) claims this is unfeasible due to an alleged “cyberattack” it suffered. The election results have been contested in the streets, with demonstrations repressed by security forces, resulting in about two thousand arrests and more than two dozen fatalities.