Costa Rica’s vice-chancellor, Gioconda Ubeda, denied that the government has permanently closed its embassy in Venezuela.
Ubeda said that the closure of embassy offices in Caracas on Thursday was a precautionaty measure for the safety of Tico diplomats, due to a series of nearby barricades put up by Venezuelan police, preventing embassy staff to get to work.
The vice-chancellor added that embassy officials are working from home.
Ubeda explained that the closing has nothing to do with the diplomatic relations between Costa Rica and Venezuela, that the street barricades are due to the domestic situation in that country and not a movement against the Costa Rican embassy.
Ubeda added that is not known if the conditions will allow the embassy to open today (Friday).
The vice-chancellor also announced that the government of Panama has requested, informally, that they provide consular services for Panamanians in Venezuela.
The consular support functions are “completely normal” after the breakdown of relations between Panama and Venezuela, Ubeda assures.
