UK to send ambassador to Venezuela, Foreign Office says

The United Kingdom is upgrading its diplomatic relations with Venezuela and will send an ambassador to Caracas, Chris Elmore, parliamentary under-secretary of state at the Foreign Office, has announced.

He said the government will deepen engagement with President Delcy Rodriguez and her government to advance the UK’s priorities, Caliber.Az reports, citing the House of Commons.

He added that as part of this approach, the UK and Venezuela have agreed their intention to upgrade the level of their diplomatic representation to ambassadorial level.

The Foreign Office representative also stated that the change in the UK’s position was motivated by considerations of pragmatic engagement, enabling London to play a constructive role in the democratic transition in Venezuela.

He described the decision as part of a broader international process of returning to engagement with Caracas.

The last British ambassador to Venezuela was John Saville, who served from 2014 to 2017. The diplomatic mission has continued to operate since then, but has been headed by a chargé d’affaires.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov