Why Petro's Normalization of Ties with Venezuela Makes Sense

Petro should be commended for having the courage to break with the disastrous policy he inherited.

Andres Oppenheimer berates Colombian President Gustavo Petro for restoring ties with Venezuela:

By visiting Venezuela and treating Maduro as a legitimate president, Petro is normalizing an international pariah. That will further embolden Maduro, and could set a terrible precedent for other aspiring autocrats. They will conclude that they can break democratic norms and get away with it.

Oppenheimer tries to score a few points against the Colombian government’s arguments for normalizing relations with Venezuela, but the case for normalization is stronger than he allows. This becomes clearer if we turn the question around on critics of Petro: should his government have continued to support the farcical, destructive effort to bring down the de facto Venezuelan government? Breaking off diplomatic relations is one of the most extreme measures that a state can take, and usually the only reason to keep those ties cut for a long time is if two states are currently engaged in hostilities. Seeking to isolate another state diplomatically in pursuit of regime change is highly unusual, and it is the pursuit of regime change rather than reestablishing normal ties that needs to be justified. The regime change policy was a mistake from the start, and it makes sense to abandon it. Petro should be commended for having the courage to break with the disastrous policy he inherited.