Abstract
The year 2024 marks 25 years since ‘Chavismo’ took office in Venezuela. Commencing with Hugo Chávez in 1999, and continuing with Nicolás Maduro (2013–), the Bolivarian revolution has challenged local and foreign elites by retaking control of the country’s oil industry, rejected US hegemony, and promoted greater political and economic independence through the integration of Latin America and the Caribbean. While Chávez and Maduro’s populist rhetoric has been evident during both presidencies, both leaders have differed in the effectiveness of their speeches and media presence. Also, while Venezuela’s push for regional integration has continued in recent years despite serious setbacks to such projects as the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America – People’s Trade Treaty (ALBA–TCP), Petrocaribe, the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), the effectiveness of Caracas’ foreign policy has diminished under Maduro due to the impact of US economic sanctions, a decline in global oil prices from 2014 onwards and changing administrations in Brasilia from the progressive presidencies of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Dilma Vana Rousseff (2003–16) to the hard-right governments of Michel Temer and Jair Bolsonaro (2016–23). Analysing these developments and the rift between Caracas and Brasilia over the 2024 presidential election result in Venezuela, this article will explore some of the trajectories of Caracas’ foreign policy towards the promotion of regionalism in the Americas while seeking to contrast some of the successes and failures between the Chávez and Maduro administrations.
Published Version
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