Heine Talks What’s Next for Venezuela Under Rodríguez’s Leadership
Ambassador Jorge Heine, former Chilean diplomat and professor at the Pardee School of Global Studies, offered a cautious assessment of Venezuela’s uncertain political moment in a recent interview for CNN International. Commenting ahead of an address by acting president Delcy Rodríguez, Heine predicted she would emphasize continuity and stability, pointing to modest economic recovery, rising oil production, and expanded space for private enterprise over the past two years. He stressed that recent events in Venezuela do not amount to “regime change,” but rather a “leadership change,” noting that the current situation resembles an unusual form of co-government in which major decisions appear to be shaped simultaneously from Caracas and Washington.
Heine also warned against expectations of a rapid democratic transition or the immediate incorporation of the opposition into government, calling such scenarios unrealistic and potentially destabilizing. On the economic front, he described Venezuela’s paradox of possessing the world’s largest oil reserves while remaining deeply impoverished. Although Rodríguez has shown some capacity to manage the crisis, Heine noted that large-scale foreign investment—particularly from U.S. energy companies—faces significant uncertainty given the poor state of Venezuela’s oil infrastructure and volatile market conditions. Overall, he argued, the emerging U.S.–Venezuela partnership may be “the best under the current circumstances,” even as the long-term political and economic trajectory remains highly unclear.
A former research professor at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies, Jorge Heine is a diplomat, international relations scholar, and lawyer. He is currently a non-resident fellow at the Quincy Institute. He has served as an ambassador of Chile to China, India, and South Africa. Heine has written over fifteen books, including The Non-Aligned World: Striking Out in an Era of Great Power Competition (2025), which provides insights on how the Global South can navigate the changing diplomatic landscape amid the U.S.-China rivalry.