Venezuelan acting president Delcy Rodríguez and UN High Commissioner for Refugees Barham Salih met in Caracas on Friday to define a roadmap for strengthening bilateral cooperation.
The UNHCR chief’s official visit will run through Saturday, October 3, during which he will carry out various work commitments in the country. Both sides said the new stage of relations is governed by the principles of frank dialogue, mutual respect, national sovereignty, humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence that guide humanitarian action.
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During the working meetings, the two delegations focused on consolidating relations between Venezuela’s National Commission for Refugees (CONARE) and UNHCR, and on exploring new initiatives to improve care and protection for refugees, in line with what they described as the Venezuelan State’s humanist vision.
UNHCR has maintained an uninterrupted presence in Venezuela since 1991, during which it has responded to emergencies, including contingencies arising from recent earthquakes.
The Caracas meeting follows a previous encounter between Foreign Minister Félix Plasencia and Salih on the sidelines of the 81st UN General Assembly session in New York.
The Venezuelan delegation in Caracas also included First Deputy Foreign Minister Oliver Blanco and Deputy Minister for Multilateral Affairs Joaquín Pérez. The multilateral delegation included UNHCR Regional Director for the Americas Isabel Márquez, UN resident coordinator Álvaro Rodríguez, senior official Federico Sersale, UNHCR representative in Venezuela Kristin Halvorsen and international official Melanie Gallant, among other authorities.
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