As the standoff continues without much sign of a plan B from the White House, the Maduro government is threatening to arrest President Juan Guaidó. It’s time for the other members of the 50-plus international coalition to put some muscle into the game.
The use of military force to bring about regime change in Latin America would set U.S.-Latin American relations back decades. The U.S. needs to follow a more pragmatic and ultimately productive approach.
Putting Venezuela back together again will mean that weak or non-existent institutions in government, law, business, and civil society will need to emerge. International coordination will be key.
U.S. decision makers must not let frustration or enthusiasm distract them from the importance of the Venezuelan people and the constitution. Any role for the U.S. military must be a limited, supporting one at most.
The events of January 23 were a victory for the once divided and dispirited Venezuelan opposition. But with Maduro so far refusing to step aside and a rogues’ gallery of governments lining up to support him, could the U.S. have stumbled into an international showdown?
The shameful decision of the AMLO administration to take a stance of non-intervention on Venezuela will hamper the effectiveness of a regional response, but efforts to reign in Maduro remain worthwhile and necessary.
Venezuela continues to be mired in the worst economic and humanitarian crisis in Latin America’s recent history. With Maduro beginning a second term, prospects for a way out are uncertain. But two events have pointed to a potential for change.
With 19 votes in favor, the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States (OAS) agreed “to not recognize the legitimacy of Nicolas Maduro’s new term as of the 10th of January of 2019.”
A Grupo de Lima founding member and a champion of restoring democracy in Venezuela under previous administrations, Mexico under AMLO has scaled back its support for human rights defense in the region.
Unlike his victory speech, AMLO’s first address as President of Mexico was full of mixed messages, casting even more doubt over the country’s course for the next six years.
