First modification:
The arrival of Gustavo Petro to the Presidency of Colombia, in addition to being the first time that the left achieves power in the nation, served for Caracas and Bogotá to resume diplomatic and commercial relations. In the last decade, the distance between the two countries, mainly due to political differences, generated a negative impact on their trade relations.
On August 19, 2015, the government of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro announced the closure of the border crossings between Colombia and Venezuela under the argument of “security reasons”.
The situation, which at first was temporary, generated social complications because it affected citizens who live in border areas and live on both sides of the border area. On the other hand, it impacted the commercial relations of the two countries, affecting from the small merchant to the entrepreneurs and the GDP of the nations.
Colombia and Venezuela share 2,219 kilometers of border, with diverse characteristics and wide possibilities for development on both sides. Similarly, these two nations, which according to the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) have a long history of economic relations, most notably in the 1970s, became major trading partners.
Trade relations began to be woven at the end of the 1980s, they were structured in the mid-1990s, with the establishment of, among other things, the Free Trade Zone and various agreements that consolidated trade relations between both nations and exploded during the first decade of the year 2000.
Under the command of Hugo Chávez in Venezuela, commercial exchanges increased and marked the best time. This situation arose because the Venezuelan government enjoyed the benefits of high oil prices.
Between the years 2000 and 2009, the commercial exchange between Venezuela and Colombia averaged 1,793 million dollars, but with an exponential growth when it rose from 1,422 in 2006 to 4,054 million dollars in 2007, not to mention the 5,117 million reached in 2008 .
Distance Chávez – Uribe, beginning of the commercial fracture
Although the closure of the border in 2015 marked the most abrupt period in the decline of trade relations between Colombia and Venezuela, in 2010 these had already been affected by the breakdown of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
In July 2010, during a special session of the Security Council of the Organization of American States (OAS), Colombia denounced the alleged presence of members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the National Liberation Army (ELN) in Venezuelan territory with the consent of the authorities.
“There is nothing left for us, out of dignity, but to completely break off diplomatic relations with sister Colombia and that brings a tear to my heart. I hope that rationality prevails in the Colombia that thinks,” Chávez said at the time.
After the action, the commercialization between both countries decreased from 3,578 million dollars to 1,728 million dollars in the years 2009 and 2010. Then it registered a slight improvement with figures below 3,000 million dollars, between 2011 and 2014, until the border closure in 2015.
Markets, entrepreneurs and citizens optimistic about the new relations
The coming to power of Gustavo Petro marks that, for the first time in recent years, Caracas and Bogotá will be able to count on governments with similar ideologies, so relations could be the best.
In this sense, the ambitions in commercial matters are high, it is enough to look at the tweet of the appointed ambassador of Colombia in Venezuela, Armando Benedetti, to realize the objective to which both nations aspire.
“President Gustavo Petro, I will surprise you when we reach 10,000 million dollars in commercial exchange, when we benefit the more than 8,000,000 Colombians who live on the border. No imaginary line will separate us again as brothers THANK YOU FOR YOUR TRUST! ”, Benedetti wrote on his Twitter account.
President @petrogustavoI will surprise you when we reach 10 billion dollars in trade, when we benefit the more than 8 million Colombians who live on the border. No imaginary line will ever separate us as brothers.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TRUST!— Armando Benedetti (@AABenedetti) August 12, 2022
However, and despite the optimism, the chambers that bring together businessmen and various specialists have shown caution regarding the growth of trade.
According to the Colombo-Venezuelan Chamber (CCV), the commercial exchange could be around between 800 and 1,200 million dollars due, in part, to the current economic situation in Venezuela, which aspires to positive growth by 2022.
“In a long time we haven’t talked about moderate optimism, which we have to plan and develop (…) We are in a period of moderate growth (in Venezuela) that will serve a lot for the bilateral relationship,” said Germán Umaña, executive president of the CVC.
Businessmen from both countries held a meeting in the Colombian city of Cúcuta, in the northeast of the country, where they exchanged points of view regarding the situation.
“We believe that with the opening of the bridges between the state of Táchira (Venezuela) and Norte de Santander (Colombia), all that informal trade could become formal if there is the will to support this initiative,” said Luis Alberto Russián, president of the Cavecol’s board of directors.
With EFE and local media
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