China-venezuela Relations: The Shift Of The Relation With Hugo Chávez Rise To Power

Today the Sino-Venezuela relation has become a model of countries cooperation,friendship and partnership, as well as a model of strategic complementarity and arelevant relation in the international arena, more specifically in Latin America. Thisdissertation aims at analyzing and explaining Venezuela and China relation through aVenezuelan approach, historically and currently, taking more into details andrelevance the period when President Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías was in power, and hisrole in the building of this strategic relationship.This dissertation is divided into four chapters. The first chapter briefly exploresVenezuela Foreign Policy, and some historical points that help us for a betterunderstanding of the international political actions of the South American country.The second chapter examines Venezuela and China relationship from it establishmentin1974until1999, and then from1999, when Hugo Chávez inaugurated hisgovernment. Also in the analysis of the Sino-Venezuelan relation during HugoChávez’s term, a quantitative resume is provided to evidence the growth of therelation. The third chapter is a continuation of the second part of the previous chapter,and addresses the current relation of China and Venezuela. This current relationship isevidently related with the relation led by President Hugo Chávez, but deserves aseparation as is under the period which starts with the physical disappearance ofChávez in2013: the post Chávez era. This chapter also shows the expectationscoming ahead with the new leader of the Venezuelan Government Nicolás MaduroMoros. The fourth chapter analyzes the participation and role of President Chávez tostrength the relation between two countries.This study has been done in a very important year for the Sino-Venezuelanrelationship, which is about to celebrate its40th anniversary on the28th of June of2014; inside of this frame is expecting to result a valuable contribution for theknowledge of people from both countries regarding this natural friendship.After a stuy of the Sino-Venezuela relations through the Venezuelan point of view, theauthor concludes that, Venezuela has developed a new foreign policy since1999, andsince then are similars aspects in the foreign policy making process of both countries,in terms of the two countries want independence, equality and mutual respect. Alsothat Venezuela and China are complementary and strategic friends, an their relation isbased on integration and cooperation in all fields. In the same way, Hugo Chavez played a relevant role in the building of the relationship and he had big impact inaproaching to China process. Moreover, the expectations of the relation afterChavez’s passing are assure in the fulliment of his legacy with the Presidency ofNicolas Maduro and with the presence of the Bolivarian Process in the government.