ROME (Reuters) – Italy’s foreign ministry said on Tuesday it had summoned the Venezuelan chargée d’affaires in Rome to complain about the arrest warrant that has been issued against opposition leader Edmundo Gonzalez.
During the meeting, Italian officials renewed calls for the publication of the results of July 28 elections, which outgoing President Nicolas Maduro claims to have won while opposition tallies show a resounding victory for Gonzalez.
“Italy…strongly condemns the news of the arrest warrant against Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, the opposition’s presidential candidate,” the ministry said.
It also called for the release of political prisoners, particularly those with Italian passports.
Venezuela is home to a large Italian community, with around 160,000 Italian nationals, mostly with dual Venezuelan citizenship, officially registered in the country, according to the Italian embassy in Caracas.
The charge d’affaires is the top diplomat in a foreign embassy in the absence of the ambassador.
(Reporting by Alvise Armellini, editing by Alberto Chiumento and Angus MacSwan)
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