Venezuela on Table When Obama Meets Brazilian President Rousseff
Venezuela on Table When Obama Meets Brazilian President Rousseff
President Dilma Rousseff must strike a balance regarding Venezuela during her visit with President Obama, says AS/COA’s Brian Winter.
The two strongest economies in the Western Hemisphere will discuss one of its most precarious when Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff meets with President Barack Obama Tuesday at the White House. The leaders will address the increasingly dire situation in Venezuela as the economy struggles and political dissidents remain jailed despite international calls for their release.
Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemispheric Affairs Roberta Jacobson confirmed that Venezuela would be on the agenda at Tuesday's bilateral meeting in Washington....
... Rousseff and other Latin American leaders have been wary to push Maduro too hard and not be seen as siding too closely with the U.S. against Venezuela.
Brian Winter, vice president of the Americas Society/Council of the Americas, said Rousseff must strike a balance during her visit with Obama when it comes to Venezuela.
"It's a difficult issue for Brazil, Venezuela is, because Brazil has some influence in Caracas and Brazil also knows that if it pounds the desk too hard that it will lose what influence it has," Winter says. "I would not expect to see a joint statement after the meeting [Tuesday] that explicitly mentions Venezuela. It may be elliptically eluded to with a statement about supporting democracies in the hemisphere, something like that, but Brazil is constantly trying to be careful not to lose what influence it's gotten...."
