Argentina To Re-Establish Diplomatic Relations With Venezuela

On Monday, Argentina’s President Alberto Fernandez said that his government wishes to re-establish diplomatic relations with Venezuela as part of its rapprochement policy with the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC).

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“It’s time to help Venezuela face its economic and political crisis through dialogue and conciliation,” Fernandez said, stressing that the Venezuelan elections of governors and mayors, held on Nov. 21, 2021, were a democratic success.

Accompanied by Ecuadoran President Guillermo Lasso, who has been a fierce critic of Caracas, Fernandez called on all Latin American countries to review and rethink their relations with Venezuela.

"The joint aid will always have a greater effect," Fernandez said, stressing that CELAC should not only serve as a platform to rebuild regional unity based on political equality but also by respecting differences.

Diplomatic relations between Argentina and Venezuela tensed during far-right President Mauricio Macri's administration (2015-2019), which recognized the Venezuelan opposition lawmaker Juan Gaido as the legitimate president of his country.

Ecuadoran President Lenin Moreno (2017-2021) also broke diplomatic relations with the Bolivarian government in 2018. Both countries, however, maintain diplomatic representatives at the consular level since there is an Ecuadorian consulate in Caracas and two Venezuelan consulates in Ecuador, one in Quito and the other in Guayaquil.

"Although we welcome Fernandez’s call, we are not yet ready to make a decision," Lasso highlighted and called to respect the principle of free self-determination of peoples.