Since the government of former president Hugo Chávez, Venezuela has been a key ally of Russia. In 2005, Chávez began purchasing Russian helicopters and armaments, which made Moscow a major supplier to the South American country. Later, after sanctions were imposed on the Maduro regime, Russia supported Caracas in crude oil exports.
However, some economists believe that trade relations are not significant in size. Venezuela’s largest export product is oil, and Russia is already one of the world’s major producers. Steel mills and so many other companies in Venezuela are closed or have low production. This means that Venezuela’s support is weighted more in ideology and an attempt to cooperate between countries with a similar political vision.
The position of Maduro and his government
After the invasion of Ukraine on February 24, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Felix Plasencia was the first to speak on behalf of Nicolas Maduro’s government.
“Venezuela reiterates the diplomatic path as the only option for peace, understanding and life. Likewise, we reject the actions of those who seek to weaken Russia with illicit sanctions and attacks,” Plasencia wrote in a tweet.
Later, Maduro announced his support for President Vladimir Putin and ratified the persistence of diplomatic and commercial relations.
“The main war in the world is economic… Look at what they are doing with Russia, it is a crime what they are doing against the Russian people, they took them out of the SWIFT system, they closed their airspace, they closed their commercial ties, and they banned the use of the dollar, it is madness what they are doing with Russia,” Maduro said in a governmental act.
Guaidó and the support for Ukraine
Meanwhile, opposition leader Juan Guaidó, who is recognized by a number of countries as Venezuela’s interim president, condemned Russia’s invasion.
“We express our support to the Ukrainian people and President Zelensky after the unjustifiable and atrocious military invasion perpetrated by President Putin, backed by the dictatorship of Nicolas Maduro,” Guaidó ratified through a statement.
The Venezuelan and Ukrainian people have had links in the past as they have gone through parallel moments of struggle.
“Venezuela does not forget the solidarity of the Ukrainian people. Today we remember how in 2014, while thousands of Venezuelans were in the streets defending democracy, our flag was raised in the streets of Ukraine in the midst of the Maidan”.
It was not only Guaidó who recalled this moment, social media users in Venezuela also joined in solidarity.
“The alarming support shown by the Venezuelan dictatorship to the very serious decision taken by the Russian Federation against its nation is new proof that the Maduro regime is part of the international catalog of autocracies that support each other, without hesitation, to perpetrate attacks against the democracies of the free world”, Guaidó said.
Business alliances between Moscow and Caracas
In February 2022, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov was visiting Venezuela and referred to Maduro’s government as a strategic partner, with bilateral exchanges of “goods such as pharmacological products and also food”.
For his part, Maduro announced that his government is prepared to sell Russia whatever it needs to buy. But Venezuela’s economy has slumped in recent years and experts wonder what Maduro can offer.
“Now that the West has entered into hysteria, desperation and madness with Russia, we are going to maintain our commercial relations with Russia and we are ready to sell them everything we can, modestly, and everything Russia needs to buy,” Maduro reiterated.
Some analysts fear that this support from Maduro’s government could lead to more sanctions for Venezuela. On the other hand, although the rise in oil prices favors the country, it could generate problems in collections, since the means of payment are made through Russia.
Focus on Latin American allies
During the extraordinary UN General Assembly to condemn the Russian invasion and demand the cessation of hostilities, five countries voted against (Syria, Eritrea, Belarus, North Korea and Russia) and 35 abstained, among them Cuba, Nicaragua, Bolivia and El Salvador, while Venezuela is disqualified due to debts with the organization. Although the resolution has no legal implications, it does have political weight.
According to information handled by the New York Times, a US delegation traveled to Venezuela a few days ago to pay more attention to Russia’s allies in Latin America. Maduro’s government and Washington cut relations in 2019 after elections that were internationally qualified as fraudulent, so the visit could arguably be related to the White House’s interest in replacing the oil they currently buy from Russia.
Image credit: www.kremlin.ru
_01.jpg){kind=link}