Communiqué

The president of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Comandante Hugo Chávez, in the name of the Venezuelan people and its government, energetically condemns the terrorist attacks perpetrated today in Damascus in the Syrian Arab Republic, whose terrible result is at least 30 dead and hundreds of wounded.

The Bolivarian government wishes to send the most heartfelt words of condolence to the brave Syrian people, particularly to the families and friends of the victims of this crime.

The government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela has the full confidence that the Syrian authorities will use all legal means to clarify the facts and bring to justice those responsible for these acts of violence, which are aimed at sowing fear and creating a climate of uncertainty in Syria, in order to undermine the initiatives for dialogue and negotiated solution to the ongoing conflict in the country.

The president of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, committed to the right to self-determination and independence of all peoples, rejecting colonialism and war, reaffirms his support for all constructive peace proposals to arrive at an agreed-upon solution to the situation of turmoil in the Syrian Arab Republic based on the principles of the sovereignty of the Syrian people and of the independence and preservation of the territorial integrity of Syria.

Caracas, 23 December 2011