Relationship dossier
Curaçao
Venezuela
Relationship assessment
Practical oil ties and a 2019 border closure shaped relations, while foreign affairs are handled by the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Curaçao toward Venezuela
Not assessedCuraçao is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, whose government handles foreign affairs. Curaçao served as a staging point for humanitarian aid intended for Venezuela in 2019, but the respective roles of Curaçao’s and the Kingdom’s governments are unclear.
Venezuela toward Curaçao
-15Venezuela’s state oil company operated Curaçao’s Isla refinery under a long-term lease, establishing substantial practical cooperation. In 2019, Venezuela closed its air and maritime borders with Curaçao amid opposition to the island’s role as a humanitarian-aid staging point.
Overall relationship
Not assessedHow to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Curaçao is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, whose government handles foreign affairs and defense. Curaçao has had a major practical relationship with Venezuela through the Isla refinery, which was operated by Venezuela’s state oil company under a long-term lease. Relations also faced disruption when Venezuela closed its air and maritime borders with Curaçao in 2019 amid opposition to the island’s role as a humanitarian-aid staging point.
Areas of tension
- Venezuela’s 2019 border closure amid opposition to Curaçao’s role as a humanitarian-aid staging point.
Key developments
Venezuela closed its air and maritime borders with Curaçao amid opposition to the island’s role as a humanitarian-aid staging point.
Venezuela’s state oil company operated Curaçao’s Isla refinery under a long-term lease; the lease ended in 2019.
Major uncertainties
- The division of responsibility between Curaçao’s government and the Kingdom of the Netherlands in specific dealings with Venezuela is unclear.
- The extent of current refinery-related and other bilateral cooperation is uncertain.