Relationship dossier
El Salvador
Venezuela
Relationship assessment
Earlier regional cooperation gave way to a diplomatic rupture in 2019
El Salvador toward Venezuela
-40El Salvador recognized Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s interim president and expelled Venezuelan diplomats in 2019, a direct challenge to Nicolás Maduro’s government. Earlier FMLN-led governments had cooperated with Venezuela through regional initiatives.
Venezuela toward El Salvador
-35Venezuela responded to El Salvador’s 2019 expulsion of its diplomats by expelling Salvadoran diplomats. Earlier Venezuelan-backed regional initiatives had provided a channel for cooperation with El Salvador under previous governments.
Overall relationship
-30The relationship has combined earlier cooperation through Venezuela-backed regional initiatives with a later, pronounced diplomatic rupture. El Salvador’s recognition of Guaidó and the reciprocal expulsions in 2019 are major adversarial features, while the earlier cooperation prevents the relationship from being characterized solely by confrontation.
How 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
Relations shifted from cooperation under El Salvador’s previous FMLN governments, including participation in Venezuela-backed regional initiatives, to confrontation under President Nayib Bukele. El Salvador recognized Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s interim president and expelled Venezuelan diplomats in 2019; Venezuela responded by expelling Salvadoran diplomats. These actions mark a substantial political rupture, though the longer-term bilateral relationship has included cooperation as well as conflict.
Areas of tension
- El Salvador’s recognition of Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s interim president
- Reciprocal diplomatic expulsions in 2019
Key developments
El Salvador recognized Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s interim president and expelled Venezuelan diplomats; Venezuela responded by expelling Salvadoran diplomats.
Major uncertainties
- The scope and continuation of earlier cooperation through Venezuela-backed regional initiatives are unclear.
- The status and extent of direct government cooperation after the 2019 diplomatic expulsions are uncertain.