Chile’s President-Elect Kast Signals Support for Intervention in Venezuela, Addresses Immigration Crisis
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A shift to the right is underway in Latin America as Chile’s newly elected president, José Antonio Kast, expressed openness to “any situation that ends with a dictatorship” in Venezuela, while simultaneously outlining plans to address the influx of Venezuelan migrants. The statements, made Tuesday, December 16, 2025, following a meeting with Argentine President Javier Milei in Buenos Aires, signal a potentially dramatic foreign policy realignment for Chile and a hardening stance on regional immigration.
Kast acknowledged Chile’s limited capacity for direct intervention, stating, “Clearly we cannot intervene in that because we are a small country… but if someone is going to do it, let them be clear that it solves a gigantic problem for us and for all of Latin America, for all of South America.” This comment comes as the government of former U.S. President Donald Trump had previously increased pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro through military deployments and economic sanctions, including the seizure of oil assets.
The issue of Venezuelan migration was also central to Kast’s discussions with Milei and other regional leaders, including those from Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Panama, Costa Rica, and El Salvador. With nearly 300,000 Venezuelan immigrants currently residing in Chile, Kast proposed the creation of a “humanitarian corridor” to facilitate their return to Venezuela. He indicated that while immediate expulsion was impractical “because there is no capacity,” he urged migrants to “take their things, leave and then apply to enter again with all the papers in order.”
Maduro Condemns Kast, Accusations Fly
The remarks from Chile’s president-elect drew immediate and sharp criticism from Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who on Monday accused Kast of harboring ideologies reminiscent of Adolf Hitler. “You may be a follower of Hitler and educated in Hitler’s values, you may be a convicted and confessed Pinochetist, but be careful, it hurts a Venezuelan! Venezuelans are respected!” Maduro declared on his weekly television program. Kast swiftly denied the accusations at a press conference on Tuesday.
The broader context is a mass exodus from Venezuela, with approximately seven million citizens having emigrated since 2014 due to a severe humanitarian, political, and economic crisis. Many have sought refuge in neighboring Latin American countries, as well as Spain and the United States.
A New Political Alignment in South America?
Kast’s meeting with Milei at Casa Rosada focused on shared priorities, including security, combating transnational organized crime, and fostering trade and investment, according to the Argentine presidency. The encounter underscores a growing alignment between the two leaders, both of whom represent a significant shift to the right in the region. Milei was among the first to congratulate Kast on his electoral victory, stating it was “one more step in our region in defense of life, liberty and private property.”
Analysts suggest this victory represents more than just a political shift within Chile. Alejandro Frenkel, a professor of International Relations at the University of San Martín in Argentina, described Kast’s win as “an advance of the extreme right in South America.” He further noted that Milei is “no longer the only one of these far-right populist leaders closely aligned with the agenda of the conservative far-right in the West, where there are Donald Trump, Giorgia Meloni (in Italy) and the Vox party in Spain.”
Despite the ideological shift, the existing relationship between Argentina and Chile remains robust. According to Frenkel, the two nations maintain a “solid and diversified relationship” with ongoing cooperation in areas such as the military, education, health, and infrastructure, which is expected to continue regardless of changes in government. He does not anticipate “major changes at the regional level or in the bilateral commercial relationship.”
Milei is scheduled to attend Kast’s inauguration on March 11, signaling continued collaboration between the two newly aligned administrations. This event will be closely watched as a marker of the evolving political landscape in Latin America.
