Venezuela (2019 onwards)

[AdamG]

Interesting writeup on the other players at the table.

Maduro has as well as other allies in the Region as well as outside. Cuba, already under Maduro’s predecessor, Hugo Chávez, a close Partner, said the autocrat of his support.

Venezuela’s biggest creditor is China. Since 2008, the leadership invested in Beijing in infrastructure and oil Projects. Official Figures are not available. According to estimates, China will have invested more than 70 billion dollars in Venezuela. The country pays its debt to the industry intelligence Bloomberg, mostly with oil Supplies, tens of billions should, however, be still open. In September of last year, the governments of Maduro and China’s Xi Jinping signed new contracts.

Vladimir Putin (R), Russian President, Xi Jinping, President of China

The Kremlin supports Venezuela’s military as well as billions of credits. The reason is the geo-strategic importance in the Western hemisphere, as it were, “on the doorstep” of the USA, country located. Russian state companies have invested heavily in the mineral-rich country and no interest in a change of government that could interfere with your business relationships.

Moscow sent in the past, several long-range bombers to Caracas, most recently in mid-December, two nuclear-capable Tu-160 supersonic bomber. Under Chávez, Venezuela’s armor had sourced goods from Russia and this, in part, with Oil paid. Maduro has difficulties to pay the approximately $ 17 billion in debt to Russia. In search of money and protection, has made Venezuela from Russia and China.

Turkey and Iran: Erdogan holds up to Maduro, Tehran

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made his admiration for Maduro never tried to hide. And in the current situation of solid he is linearized with him. “Maduro, brother, stay strong, we are with you,” he said. “We are Maduro”, which became a Trend on Twitter in Turkey. Erdogan and Maduro, a similar policy combines understanding: Both of them are in the West, as autocrats decried that have undermined the Opposition press and the rule of law.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan

Under Maduro’s predecessor, Chavez has been Venezuela’s closest foreign policy ally of Iran outside of the Islamic world – and has remained so until today. Ideologically, both regimes share an aggressive Anti-Americanism. Quite handy they have a common interest in high Oil prices, both economies are largely Petro-exports.

Both governments have closed in the past 15 years, hundreds of bilateral agreements, including on military cooperation. In addition, both countries established a joint Bank, which is suspected to serve Tehran in the circumvention of international sanctions. Also, the Iran-financed and highly armed Hezbollah militia have long been set in Venezuela and the country, among other things, money laundering.

https://www.newsarticleinsiders.com/...g-at-venezuela

[AdamG]

More bad guys, courtesy of Hollywood's central casting.

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Private military contractors who do secret missions for Russia flew into Venezuela in the past few days to beef up security for President Nicolas Maduro in the face of U.S.-backed opposition protests, according to two people close to them.

Yevgeny Shabayev, leader of a local chapter of a paramilitary group of Cossacks with ties to Russian military contractors, said he had heard the number of Russian contractors in Venezuela may be about 400.

But the other sources spoke of small groups.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-v...KCN1PJ22M?il=0

Benghazi Redux?

As a standoff hardens in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas between U.S. diplomats and the country’s “illegitimate” president, Nicolas Maduro, experts say security at the American Embassy may become a critical issue if the situation in the streets goes from bad to worse.

“The U.S. embassies are considered U.S. enclaves, so the biggest impact could be the jettison of local foreign nationals who work inside could probably be forced to leave,” he said. “Along with the perimeter guard force. U.S. personnel in the embassy are likely allowed, or limited to travel, to and from the embassy, but are probably not permitted right now to travel outside Caracas.”

Rasmussen also highlighted the security risk 'definitely increases” with demands and threats like those issued by Maduro. “And from the perspective of the Venezuelans, they will suffer because consular services will be either be eliminated or cut back, so trying to get a visa or seek asylum could be next to impossible to achieve,”

Caracas-based journalist Noris Argotte noted there is always a group of Marines and military attaches guarding the compound, but noted all embassies in Caracas also use a team of local Venezuelan police and military officers to “support the security.” That's typically the case with diplomatic missions around the world.

https://www.foxnews.com/world/venezu...lomats-at-risk

[davidbfpo]

Even The Guardian has an opinion piece that says enough. Plus a summary of what has happened. Venezuela does get some news coverage, often with rejoinders that Jeremy Corbyn is a fan of Maduro.
Link:https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jan/27/no-pity-for-corrupt-maduro-who-has-broken-his-country-democracy-must-have-its-day?

[davidbfpo]

I have closed the previous Venezuela thread (90k views) since 2006. This thread was in the Whole News arena and has been moved here, with a new title.
The old thread was:http://council.smallwarsjournal.com/...la-(2006-2018)

[Bill Moore]

https://smallwarsjournal.com/blog/ve...-not-intervene

After their incursions into Georgia and Crimea for non-humanitarian purposes, Russia can take its warning and shove it. That China, Russia, and Iran's leadership support Maduro reinforces the statement in the U.S. National Security Security that today's competition is fundamentally between those who support a free and open internal order and those who seek to impose authoritarian models (China, Russia, Iran, ISIS). Unfortunately, during the early years of the Cold War, the CIA engaged in activites that undermined our credibility as a nation that stood for democratic values and human rights in Latin America. Although the U.S. has learned from those misadventures, distrust lingers on, which will hamper our ability to dominate the narrative if we intervene. Obama's don't do stupid stuff was not a strategy, but it was prudent guidance that should frame future actions. In simple terms, maintaining the high moral ground equates to greater freedom of movement. We have the high moral ground, but are somewhat limited by immoral actions that occcurred decades ago. Step one, regain legitimacy to act with the people in the region by pushing the narrative that this is really is based on promoting freedom, human rights, and averting a humanitarian disaster that China and Russia willingly support.

[AdamG]

Fireball IED Engulfs Police Motorcycle Convoy In Venezuela

https://www.funker530.com/ied-motorc...nvoy-venezuela

[AdamG]

(Bloomberg) -- Late last month, as U.S. officials joined Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido near a bridge in Colombia to send desperately needed aid to the masses and challenge the rule of Nicolas Maduro, some 200 exiled soldiers were checking their weapons and planning to clear the way for the convoy.

Led by retired General Cliver Alcala, who has been living in Colombia, they were going to drive back the Venezuelan national guardsmen blocking the aid on the other side. The plan was stopped by the Colombian government, which learned of it late and feared violent clashes at a highly public event it promised would be peaceful.

Almost no provisions got in that day and hopes that military commanders would abandon Maduro have so far been dashed. Even though Guaido is back in Caracas, recognized by 50 nations as the legitimate leader of Venezuela, the impromptu taking up of arms shows that the push to remove Maduro -- hailed by the U.S. as inevitable -- is growing increasingly chaotic and risky.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/heavily-a...100000331.html