Pro-democracy demonstrators gather outside of the Organization of American States (OAS) during a special special meeting of the Permanent Council in Washington, Monday, April 3, 2017, to consider the recent events in Venezuela. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
On April 26, 2017, the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States (OAS) approved a resolution to convene a meeting of Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the region to consider the situation facing the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
The Resolution was approved by a roll-call vote with 19 in favor, 10 against, 4 abstentions, and 1 absent. The Permanent Missions of Argentina, The Bahamas, Barbados, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, United States, Honduras, Jamaica, Guatemala, Guyana, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Saint Lucia and Uruguay voted in favor.
The representatives of Antigua and Barbuda, Bolivia, Dominica, Ecuador, Haiti, Nicaragua, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname and Venezuela voted against, and abstaining were: Belize, El Salvador, Dominican Republic, and Trinidad and Tobago. Grenada was absent from the meeting. The place and date of the meeting are yet to be determined. The text of the measure is as follows:
CP/RES. 1079 (2111/17)
CONVOCATION OF A MEETING OF CONSULTATION OF
MINISTERS OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS TO CONSIDER THE SITUATION IN THE
BOLIVARIAN REPUBLIC OF VENEZUELA
(Adopted by the Permanent Council at its special session held on April 26, 2017)
THE PERMANENT COUNCIL OF THE ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES,
CONSIDERING the deepening concern of the OAS Member States regarding the situation in that country;
TAKING INTO ACCOUNT the provisions of Article 61 of the Charter of the Organization of American States on the possibility of convening a Meeting of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs to consider problems of an urgent nature and of common interest;
RESOLVES
1. To convene a Meeting of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs in order to consider the topic “Situation in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.”