How are Chavismo and the opposition after meeting with the US?

Without a doubt, the rapprochements between Caracas and Washington They have already borne their first fruits for both Chavismo and the Venezuelan opposition. This is what analysts believe and consider that more progress would mean improvements for citizens, although with some nuances to be resolved or considered.

(Also read: Who are the Americans released in Venezuela?)

The first public gesture has been the release of two US citizens. Gustavo Cárdenas and Jorge Fernández left Venezuela and they are already on US soil. The first, director of the oil company Citgo, spent four years in prison and the second, a tourist, reached a year.

“The first effects are positive for both parties,” says political scientist Daniel Árias. In his opinion, the administration Biden has obtained the release of two people and on the other hand Nicolás Maduro “had a propagandistic effect”, campaigning on the vitality of Venezuelan oil for the Western world and the importance of Venezuela in Geopolitics.

Also read: Venezuela, a possible substitute for Russia in the US oil market?

On March 5, a delegation from the Joe Biden administration arrived in Caracas to meet at the Miraflores Palace with Nicolás Maduro, who assured that Cilia Flores, his wife, and the president of the National Assembly, were present at the meeting. George Rodriguez. The White House said energy issues were addressed.

There is distrust between both administrations, so the meeting makes the necessary trust begin to be built. For Chavismo, having the US delegation in Caracas “is already a triumph,” said Enderson Sequera, a political consultant.

Sequera told EL TIEMPO that in addition to taking steps to restore that trust, Maduro has achieved something else and that it was one of his objectives: “to have a direct communication channel with the White House. Without intermediaries”.

It should be clarified that the Democratic administration recently clarified that there was no type of agreement with Chavismo to release these US citizens.

How is the opposition?

For the political scientist Arias, there has also been a “partial victory” for the opposition because Maduro has been forced to reactivate the dialogues in Mexico. In addition, Biden continues to recognize Juan Guaidó as president in charge, who has also “shown discipline” to assume these US strategies that are not “risky or naive.”

The political scientist Enderson Sequera believes that, on the contrary, the interim has been “weakened”, despite the fact that the Undersecretary of State, Victoria Nuland, confirmed that the US continues to recognize Guaidó. “It is clear that the United States is interested in having a direct line with Miraflores, who de facto exercise power in the country.”

The context of this meeting is given after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Maduro, an ally of Vladimir Putin, has insisted on supporting his counterpart. But now the sanctions on that country could harm Venezuela if it does not reach an agreement with the United States.

For now, it is necessary to wait for the development of this scenario, while the Venezuelan opposition insists that any energy agreement must be accompanied by guarantees because otherwise it would be strengthening “the dictatorship” of Nicolás Maduro, as they have expressed in a statement.

ANA RODRIGUEZ BRAZON
WEATHER CORRESPONDENT
CARACAS