Alí Rodríguez Araque

Alí Rodríguez Araque
Secretary General of the Union of South American Nations
In office 11 June 2012 – 31 July 2014
Preceded by	María Emma Mejía Vélez
Succeeded by	Ernesto Samper
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Venezuela
In office November 2004 – August 2006
President	Hugo Chavez
Preceded by	Jesús Pérez
Succeeded by	Nicolás Maduro
Minister of Finance
In office June 2008 – January 2010
President	Hugo Chavez
Personal details
Profession	politician, diplomat, lawyer

File:Chavez and Toledo128122.jpg

Alí Rodríguez (in the center) with the presidents of Venezuela Hugo Chávez (left) and Peru Alejandro Toledo (right)

Alí Rodríguez Araque (born in Ejido, Mérida, 9 September 1937) is a Venezuelan politician, lawyer, and diplomat.

Biography

He is the leader of the party Patria Para Todos ("Motherland For All") and has occupied various positions in the government of President Hugo Chávez, such as oil advisor, General Secretary of OPEC, President of Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA), Minister of External Relations and Ambassador to Cuba. He was appointed as Minister of Finance in June 2008. He is currently Minister of Electric Energy.

Career

He received his legal certification from Universidad Central de Venezuela in Caracas in 1961. He studied economics, specialising in crude oil; he has written several works about the energy sector.

During the 1960s and early 1970s, he was active in the Marxist guerrilla movement operating in Venezuela. He was known as "Commander Fausto", allegedly acting as an explosives expert. He was one of the last guerrilla fighters to put down arms, after the so-called "appeasement" policy (Pacificación) signaled the end of the armed insurgency. He was pardoned and became involved in parliamentary politics, and was elected to the then National Congress. He acquired a reputation as a negotiator and consensus seeker. He was minister of energy of Venezuela from 1999, when Chávez took office, until 2000.

In 2000 he was elected secretary-general of OPEC and served from January 2001 to July 2002. He then became president of Venezuela's state-owned oil company Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA), where he masterminded the firing of more than 20,000 workers in response to their part in the company's leading role in the Venezuelan general strike of 2002-2003. He remained in that position until November 2004 when Chávez appointed him foreign minister in a cabinet reshuffle. On 1 September 2006, Rodríguez was appointed as Ambassador of Venezuela to Cuba. Later he served some time as Vice President of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela for the Andean region in Venezuela before being appointed as Minister of Finance by Chávez on 15 June 2008.

External links

• World Energy Magazine – The Global Energy Industry: An Opportunity for Cooperation, Stability and Investment
• World Energy Magazine – OPEC: New Realities and New Challenges

Preceded by Rilwanu Lukman	Secretary General of OPEC January 2001 – July 2002	Succeeded by Álvaro Silva Calderón
Preceded by Jesús Pérez	Venezuelan Minister of Foreign Affairs November 2004 – August 2006	Succeeded by Nicolás Maduro
Preceded by Unknown	Venezuelan Minister of Finance June 2008 – January 2010	Succeeded by Unknown