Venezuelan authorities announced the closure of their embassies in Norway and Australia, and planned to simultaneously open diplomatic missions in Burkina Faso and Zimbabwe. This was reported by Reuters in connection with the official statement of the Nicolas Maduro government. The reason for this step was the desire to more effectively distribute diplomatic resources and optimize the activities of the foreign policy department. The function of consular assistance to Venezuelans in Norway and Australia will be assigned to other diplomatic missions of the republic. New embassies will open in “friendly countries that serve as strategic comrades in the anti-colonial movement and resistance to hegemonic pressure.” Experts note that this decision was made amid increasingly serious disagreements between Caracas and Washington. Another symbolic element was the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to Venezuelan opposition figure Maria Corina Machado last week.
