THE OBAMA administration welcomed Venezuela’s announcement that it is sending an ambassador to Washington amid efforts to show a common front at the end of the Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago.
The move followed a high-profile handshake between US president Barack Obama and Hugo Chávez, his Venezuelan counterpart, who was a vociferous critic of the Bush administration.
David Axelrod, one of Mr Obama’s top advisers, said the US welcomed what he described as “an overture from President Chávez to restore our respective ambassadors”.
But suspicions remain between Washington and some of the continent’s left-wing leaders, despite Mr Obama’s declared intention to recast US relations with Cuba, the island which dominated the weekend’s events despite not being invited.
Mr Obama described comments by Raúl Castro, Cuba’s president, that Cuba was willing to discuss human rights “as a sign of progress”, while stressing US calls for Havana to free political prisoners and reduce charges on remittances. He also highlighted that the US would not change policy on its embargo on Cuba overnight. But an overwhelming number of Latin American leaders at the event called on Mr Obama to drop the embargo immediately.
Venezuela, Bolivia and Nicaragua refused to sign the summit’s final declaration because of Cuba’s exclusion.
At a final press conference, Mr Obama said he had “great differences” with Mr Chávez on economic and foreign policy issues. He denounced the Venezuelan leader’s “inflammatory” rhetoric towards the US and its alleged interference in neighbouring countries’ affairs.
Defending what he said was now a “more constructive relationship with Venezuela”, Mr Obama said: “On the other hand, Venezuela is a country whose defence budget is probably one-600th of the US . . . It’s unlikely that as a consequence of me shaking hands or having a polite conversation with Mr Chávez we are endangering the strategic interests of the US.”
Although the US and Venezuela maintain diplomatic relations, Venezuela’s ambassador in Washington was recalled towards the end of the Bush administration at the same time that the US envoy was expelled from Caracas.
At the summit, Mr Chávez sent out a series of warm signals towards Mr Obama. On Saturday he handed him a book about Latin America’s exploitation by colonial powers over five centuries and told reporters: “We have started off on the right foot. It’s time to have a true start of a new history.”
– (Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2009)