Colombia’s new president cosies up to Venezuela’s despot

For a century Cúcuta, Colombia’s sixth-largest city, lived on its ties to Venezuela, just half an hour away. It was the conduit for trade between the two countries, which peaked at $7.2bn in 2008. Of that, $6bn was Colombian exports, mainly of food, livestock, cars and clothing. This was a textbook example of regional integration, something more often talked about by Latin American politicians than practised. Politics killed it. First Hugo Chávez, a populist Venezuelan leader who disliked Colombia’s alliance with the United States, sought other suppliers. Then in 2019 Chavéz’s successor, Nicolás Maduro, a dictator, closed the border and broke off diplomatic relations after Colombia’s conservative president, Iván Duque, recognised the speaker of the opposition-controlled Congress, Juan Guaidó, as Venezuela’s rightful president.

Now Gustavo Petro, a left-winger who succeeded Mr Duque last month, has moved swiftly to restore ties. A new Colombian ambassador, Armando Benedetti, has been sent to Caracas. Mr Petro and Mr Maduro said that later this month the border will re-open and direct flights between the two countries will resume.