Even as the political uncertainty in Venezuela continues after nearly two months of protests, there are signs that President Nicolás Maduro is aware of the need to press on with a bit of high level of diplomatic activity to maintain regional and international support for his government.
As was reported in our March 29 edition, foreign ministers of the Union of South American Nations (Unasur) have been careful, in a joint statement, not to express support for either side in the conflict, while stressing respect for human rights and urging “all political forces” to engage in peaceful dialogue. Moreover, key regional states like Brazil and Mexico seem to be unhappy with the Venezuelan government’s less than subtle reaction to the street protests, with Brazil in particular appearing to adopt a more nuanced position.
Even so, no country in Latin America and the Caribbean wants to see a democratically elected government toppled by undemocratic means, for that would be a major and unacceptable setback to the consolidation of democracy in the region – still very much a work in progress. A peaceful, political solution has to be found.
Thus, Mr Maduro was able to assert on Monday that the mission undertaken to Caracas by Unasur foreign ministers last week had “prioritised the defence of democracy in Venezuela, the fight against the coup d’état, support for the constitutional government and support for the national dialogue” convened by the president. And now, it would appear that the foreign minister, Elías Jaua, has been deployed to shore up diplomatic support among the countries of the Caribbean Community (Caricom).
Mr Jaua’s initial sally this week was, however, curious. On Monday, he stated that Venezuela had not renounced its “historic and legitimate claim” to Essequibo – presumably to deflect Venezuelan opposition criticisms that his government has been soft on Guyana. But, in an obvious effort to reassure Georgetown and Venezuela’s allies in Caricom, he gave the assurance that Venezuela was committed to respecting the good offices mechanism established under the auspices of the United Nations Secretary General, adding, “In Latin America, nobody is thinking of conducting a war with a sister country to recover the territory it claims.”
Then, on Tuesday, on a visit to St Vincent, whose prime minister currently holds the chairmanship of Caricom, Mr Jaua adverted to the regional body’s “firm and brave solidarity” with Venezuela in the Organisation of American States (OAS), which helped to stave off any prospect of OAS – and by extension US – involvement in the Venezuelan imbroglio. He further made the point that Venezuelan support for the construction of the new international airport in St Vincent and other similar works in Latin America and the Caribbean are part of “a new geopolitical vision in the region” being promoted by the Bolivarian revolution and the Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (Alba).
All well and good; Mr Jaua has a job to do. We hope, however, that the folks at Takuba Lodge and the Caricom Secretariat are monitoring closely developments in Venezuela and statements emanating from Caracas.
With regard to Guyana’s sovereignty and the security of our western border, as we have consistently warned, we cannot take anything for granted. Indeed, our government is usually the most accommodating of neighbours when it comes to Venezuela, even when its military or citizens threaten our territorial integrity. Our government obviously has a policy of pursuing friendly cooperation with Venezuela while trying to keep the temperature over the Essequibo controversy at a manageable level. But the political crisis next door has to be cause for concern.
As for talk of “a new geopolitical vision,” Caricom as a whole would do well to consider that the evolving relationship with Venezuela threatens to place our smaller, weaker countries in a new position of dependence and vulnerability, which is clearly not in the Community’s best interests.
It is not good manners to kick a man when he is down. Similarly, in diplomacy, it is not considered good form to seek openly to take advantage of a friendly country’s internal political problems. Caricom should, nonetheless, be giving serious consideration to how to engage with Venezuela on more equal terms, in the new, emerging geopolitical and geo-economic scenario.
That is to say, Caricom’s generous and invaluable solidarity with Venezuela in regional and international forums has to count for something, without losing sight of the Community’s long-standing adherence to the dearly held principles of respect for human rights, territorial integrity and the peaceful resolution of disputes.
