Venezuela's Vice Minister Encourages Knowledge Exchange Through Academic Space

By Rosmalis Anuar BANGI (Selangor, Malaysia), June 29 (Bernama) -- As Malaysia and Venezuela enjoyed over three decades of close political, social and economic friendships, Venezuela’s Vice Minister of Foreign Relations for Asia, the Middle East and Oceania, Capaya Rodriguez Gonzalez (picture) encouraged more discourse between the two countries through academic space. Referring to the Simon Bolivar Public Lecture series held annually at the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM or the National University of Malaysia), she said it was a manifestation of the friendship formed between the two countries and demonstrated that cultural knowledge and the proximity can be closer despite geographical distance. She said it was the first public lecture that created a multidisciplinary platform for Latin American scholars to engage with Malaysian society. "Over the years, this platform has discussed topics such as regional integration, nation building, historical interpretation, and diversity, among others. Since 2015, eight uninterrupted editions has been held with the participation of essential speakers, historians, diplomats and philosophers in the area that has been discussed. "I hope that many more conferences can be offered in this binational academic space to continue honouring the political thinking of Simon Bolivar the Liberator," she said at the 8th Simon Bolivar Public Lecture at UKM, here, Tuesday. The public lecture was jointly organised by the Institute of Malaysian and International Studies (IKMAS) of UKM and the Venezuelan Embassy in Malaysia. During the event, Gonzalez also witnessed the launching of the Simon Bolivar Public Lecture book which was an anthology of the first six lectures given by distinguished speakers from Venezuela who have graced the stage from 2013 to 2018. The 8th edition of the public lecture was delivered by the Charge d'Affaires of the Venezuelan Embassy in South Korea, Dr Arturo Gil Pinto, who spoke about the challenges of the Bolivarian Doctrine in the context of the new geopolitics of oil industry. His lecture explored the history of the United States’ (US) “interference” in Venezuela's oil resources management, US sanctions against the South American country, and challenges presented by the Bolivarian Revolution to guarantee sovereignty over its natural resources within the framework of the new oil production technologies. Also present at the event were Charge d'Affaires of the Venezuelan Embassy in Malaysia Dr Morella Barreto Lopez and heads of missions from Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cuba, Mexico, Namibia, Russia and Syria. -- BERNAMA