Venezuela and South–South Cooperation: Solidarity or Realpolitik?

Venezuela has been an actor in the recent wave of South–South cooperation (SSC) that has developed since the beginning of the new millennium. The logic of Venezuelan SSC, however, has transformed since the rise to power of Hugo Chavez Frias in 1999, and in particular after his victory in the recall referendum convened by the Venezuelan political opposition in 2004. Chavez’s aim was to transform Venezuela’s foreign policy, and he was committed to expanding relations with the global South beyond the traditional Venezuelan space of cooperation and influence. A favourable context of high oil prices allowed Chavez to develop an “oil diplomacy” and to launch initiatives of cooperation in energy, education, and health. Similarly, spaces of political dialogue, such as the Africa–South America (ASA) summits and the China–Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) summits, were supported.