© Yuri Cortez/AFP/Getty Images North America/TNSOpposition leader Juan Guaido, left, and president of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro.
Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó proposed on Tuesday reaching an accord with the Nicolás Maduro regime to "save Venezuela" from its worst crisis in history, even floating the idea of lifting U.S. sanctions as an incentive to hold new elections.
"We must reach an agreement to save Venezuela," he said in a message distributed on social media. "Not just any agreement or negotiation that maintains what is in place today ... (but) an agreement that must be reached between the democratic forces represented by (the opposition), the actors that make up and support the regime and the international community."
The message appeared to signal a shift in tone from Guaidó, who is recognized by the Biden administration as Venezuela's rightful president and has publicly supported the hard-line U.S. policy.
In recent weeks, the Maduro regime has made several gestures that analysts interpret as moves to try and curry favor with the United States. Six jailed American oil executives were granted house arrest, and a new electoral board that includes two members of the opposition was named after weeks of negotiations.
Guaidó said Tuesday that any agreement must include a road map toward "free and fair" elections supervised by the international community, open the nation to receiving international aid and COVID-19 vaccines, and provide protections for all political actors.
He also called for the liberation of all political prisoners, the safe return of political exiles and the beginning of a transitional justice process to address crimes committed by the socialist regime.
Guaidó said that the gradual lifting of the international sanctions imposed on the regime could be used as an incentive to reach those objectives. He suggested reaching an accord while also stating that "no one trusts the dictatorship" and that greater national and international pressure are needed.
He also rejected the possibility of holding future elections under the current National Electoral Council, saying that the opposition does not recognize the legitimacy of the body. The new council was named after weeks of negotiations with more moderate members of the opposition.
José Vicente Carrasquero, a political science professor at the Central University of Venezuela, said Guaidó's openness toward reaching an accord marks a 180 degree shift.
"It's surprising," he said. "Here there is clearly a change in position, which is evidence of willingness to negotiate, which before didn't seem possible."
The opposition has sat at the negotiating table with the Maduro government on several previous occasions, most recently in a Norway-mediated dialogue in 2019. Those talks fell apart after Maduro's representatives suspended their participation in protest of then-U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to tighten sanctions. Opposition leaders, meanwhile, accused Maduro of using the talks as a stalling tactic.
The Biden administration has thus far maintained its tough stance with Maduro, indicating it is under no rush to lift sanctions.
Guaidó's more lenient tone comes as he struggles to regain the momentum he generated after declaring himself the nation's interim president in 2019. Venezuelans frustrated by the standoff have grown apathetic and more preoccupied by daily concerns like finding food and staying safe during the pandemic.
Carrasquero said Guaidó appears to be taking a cue from the new U.S. administration.
"This seems to be associated with the new stances of the Department of State," he said, which instead of signaling it is ready for an armed confrontation is willing to "seek an easier solution."