International Peacemaking in Venezuela's Intractable Conflict

Abstract

Can international peacemaking efforts succeed in an intractable conflict such as the one in Venezuela? In this paper we put forward a conceptualization of peacemaking processes that underlines their ability to creatively change the terms of a conflict. Then we look at the four dialogue and negotiation processes that have occurred during the government of Nicolás Maduro. Our review shows that, while it is clear that the Maduro government uses dialogue processes as a delay tactic through which it can divide and demobilize the opposition, clear progress has been made in the mediators’ ability to generate concrete articulation and discussion of the conflicting parties’ demands. However, international allies on each side of the conflict are affecting the calculations of the two sides, working against an agreement.

The West Against the Rest? Democracy Versus Autocracy Promotion in Venezuela

“…The bilateral conflict escalated in January 2019, when the US was the first country to recognise Guaidó as the legitimate president, who later on joined the Organization of American States (Legler and Nolte, 2019). In August 2019, in the midst of negotiations between the regime and the opposition under the auspices of Norway and backed by the EU (Smilde and Ramsey, 2020: 167–168), President Trump imposed new economic measures against the regime, including extraterritorial sanctions (Weisbrot and Sachs, 2019).…”