CHINESE AND RUSSIAN SUPPORT ON THE OPPOSITE VIEW OF INTERNATIONAL ISOLATION OF VENEZUELA

Abstract

The main goal of this paper is to analyze the current situation of Venezuela in the geopolitical frame of the great powers, in the light of the strong economic, political and social crisis that has unsettled the country, as well as of the geostrategic importance of the region in terms of energy. Therefore, this article aims to scan and analyze the support of China and Russia to the Nicolás Maduro government, which goes against the idea of international isolation that has been used to describe the situation of Venezuela. In this sense, Fiori’s theory of Global Power (2008) will be used to demonstrate that China and Russia own economic and geopolitical interests towards Venezuelan oil, exemplified by various agreements that illustrate the relations of these two countries with Caracas. And finally, the paradoxical notion of international isolation of Venezuela will be questioned, because, even though an idea of isolation in the western scope is spread, the country is placed at the center of the economic and geopolitical interests of the major world powers, which does not make Venezuela as “isolated” as it may seem.