Although protests in Venezuela continue, the Maduro government has not budged to the opposition's demands. Instead, Venezuela's government has opted to secure the allegiance of its South American neighbors.

United States Senator Marco Rubio called for sanctions against Venezuela earlier this month, and the Maduro administration claims the U.S. government secretly partook in the protests that erupted in February. It is uncertain whether Venezuela strengthening ties is a sign of further unrest or simply insurance. Regardless, the countryhas done so with another left-leaning government.

Argentina is the first nation to diplomatically strengthen ties with Venezuela. According to the Spanish news agency EFE, the two nations' foreign ministers met on Friday. During their meeting, the two diplomats signed a pair of accords that would ensure bilateral military cooperation as well as the sharing of technology.

Argentina's foreign minister, Agustín Rossi, said that the technology shared would help in the development of ammonia nitrate, a chemical useful in both fertilizers and explosives. Venezuela's foreign minister, Adm. Carmen Menendez, added that the two nations would share more technology, education and science.

"Our true north is the South, as our Comandante Chavez said, and we will move forward that way, all united, to consolidate regional integration," said Menendez.

Yet, not all of Venezuela's allies espouse such amicable intentions.

During the inauguration of a gathering of Latin American youth before the beginning of the G77 summit, which brought together the governments of 77 developing nations, Bolivian president Evo Morales accused the United States of inciting a civil war in Venezuela and reassured their Venezuelan allies of Bolivia's commitment, according to EFE.

"All our solidarity, our admiration for the Bolivarian revolution. We must defend and will defend the Bolivarian revolution in Venezuela," Morales told hundreds of young people from 15 countries attending the meeting in Santa Cruz.

Bolivia has been one of Venezuela's staunchest allies and has also been at odds with the United States. In 2008, Morales' government expelled the United States ambassador, Phillip Goldberg. However, in Venezuela negotiations between the two factions moves slowly. According to the Christian Science Monitor, negotiations between the two sides have not gone as well as expected, despite the government and government supporters touting it as a success for the nation.

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