Former Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla has warned that the “opportunity” for a democratic transition in Venezuela could be lost if the opposition forces are not included and if U.S. President Donald Trump only prioritizes economic investments in the country.
In an interview with Europa Press after assuming the presidency of the Club of Madrid, the former Costa Rican leader warned that as long as an “intermediate” scenario persists, one in which there is no clear commitment to the democratization of Venezuela that includes the opposition forces, the window of opportunity for a transition could close.
“The opportunity that exists for an orderly transition may begin to close. We are confident that progress can be made, but one cannot help but express concern that the message is still not clear, especially regarding the role of the opposition forces in this process,” she said, referring to Washington’s first steps in Venezuela after the capture of President Nicolás Maduro in the U.S. military operation in Caracas on January 3.
According to the former Costa Rican leader, the oil companies themselves have demanded clarity from Washington, so as long as a scenario persists in which “it is not exactly known who governs, for whom they govern, and what interests they represent,” without including the opposition forces led by Edmundo González and María Corina Machado.
Following the operation that removed Maduro from power, Chinchilla believes that there are certain “expectations.” “Even though the element of democracy has not necessarily been prioritized in Trump’s discourse. I think the United States will somehow begin to face pressure regarding these expectations,” she stated.
In her opinion, the U.S. intervention in Venezuela teaches the lesson that democracy is the “best system” to prevent internal conflicts from “escalating to the international level,” while it is also necessary to strengthen the multilateral system to avoid “unilateral actions.” Therefore, she advocated for undertaking the necessary reforms so that the system “responds promptly to the conflicts that arise.” In this regard, she rejected the idea that conflicts in the Central American or Caribbean region would “follow the same pattern,” with military intervention, but she did acknowledge that “uncertainty” currently characterizes the relations between the countries of the region and Washington.
US INFLUENCE IN CENTRAL AMERICA
The new president of the Club of Madrid, the main global forum for former presidents and prime ministers of democratic countries, commented on the growing influence of the United States in the Central American region, including in electoral processes such as those in Honduras and El Salvador.
“More than official actions between governments, these are occurring at the level of individuals who hold positions and who identify ideologically,” she indicated. “These channels of communication are operating, the meeting of these figures on issues on the global agenda, and I think that will continue to happen,” she explained.
In this way, she suggests that the electoral cycle in Latin America points to a shift to the right. “We also see that almost naturally Washington tends to have a great deal of influence on Latin American politics,” she maintained, pointing to the identification of leaders in the region with the values of Trump’s Republican Party.
ELECTIONS IN COSTA RICA
In this regard, when asked about the presidential elections in Costa Rica on February 1st, Chinchilla indicated that the country is moving in the direction of consolidating right-wing forces, following in the footsteps of the current president, Rodrigo Chaves.
“I would say that in the case of Costa Rica it’s more a matter of authoritarianism; what we are experiencing is that today it is the preferred option for the Costa Rican voter,” she indicated, acknowledging that the issues that most concern the population are migration and security, issues that benefit certain hardline positions of right-wing parties.
However, Chinchilla avoided proclaiming a conservative shift, since “sometimes it is nothing more than a reaction of punishment against those who are governing.” “It is logical that when it comes to punishing those in power, people tend to gravitate towards ideological alternatives that confront those governments,” she explained. According to his predictions, the right is well-positioned to retain power, as the ruling party’s candidate, Laura Fernández, has a significant lead in the polls over her rivals, but “a second round cannot be ruled out either,” following the trend of recent elections in Costa Rica.
