The summits are not endpoints. They are the mechanism by which two countries, which can neither resolve their differences nor afford to rupture them, manage the interval between crises.
[O]il, CITGO and the control of gold remain the key pieces on a geopolitical chessboard, with the suffering of the Venezuelan people relegated to the background.
Washington now faces choices: proceed with the deal and adjust its conception of alliances in the region or succumb to legislative stagnation and reject or downgrade the deal.