Despite New Hopes, U.S. Treads Cautiously After Death of Venezuela's Chávez
Despite New Hopes, U.S. Treads Cautiously After Death of Venezuela's Chávez
AS/COA’s Eric Farnsworth suggests President Hugo Chávez’s “outsized role in the region will change hemisphere politics” in a time when possible upheavals may complicate U.S. efforts.
(Reuters) - While the death of Venezuela's stridently anti-American President Hugo Chavez on Tuesday raised hopes in Washington for better U.S.-Venezuela relations, the Obama administration reacted cautiously as it weighed the prospects for a diplomatic thaw.
President Barack Obama quickly reached out to Venezuelans, expressing an interest in a "constructive relationship" in the post-Chavez era. But analysts said it would be hard to make tangible progress when deep political uncertainty risks destabilizing the South American oil-producing nation.
Washington's challenge will be to figure out how far to go in seizing the opening to engage with Venezuelan leaders as well as its political opposition without giving the impression of U.S. meddling following the socialist president's death after a two-year battle with cancer.
"We're not interested in having a confrontational relationship with Venezuela," a senior U.S. official told Reuters. "We're going to have to see how things evolve. It's a dynamic period."
For Washington, a major test will be whether Venezuela follows its own constitution - which has been widely interpreted to require a special election to pick Chavez's successor - and if such a vote is conducted in a free and fair way in "accordance with hemispheric norms," the official said.
Washington had accused Chavez and his allies of electoral abuses, such as intimidating foes and misusing state media during his 14-year rule….
"Chavez has played an outsized role in the hemisphere," said Eric Farnsworth, vice president of the Council of the Americas think tank. "So his passing will change hemisphere politics. This is an ending of an era or the beginning of a new one…."
