Approximately a quarter of US resources are supplied from Latin America through contracts that allow Americans, among other things, to exploit Venezuelan resources shamelessly. The royalties paid are peanuts considering the resources (mining, oil, agricultural products) not to mention the irreversible damages to the environment and the trampling on Venezuela’s rights and culture.
Latin American countries have multi-billion dollar debt to international organizations like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank whose main shareholders are American banks. This is while a majority of people in Latin American and the Caribbean live in poverty and want to migrate to the US Many reach the US-Mexico border. Some don’t get to cross the border while others get into the US to serve as cheap labor in physically demanding jobs.
Latin America is tightly controlled by over 70 US military bases for its energy sources and other natural resources. Washington considers Latin America its own backyard for its vast fresh water reserves and strategic location.
The US has a long history of intervention in Latin America and around the world. Today, however, the interference has changed shape and style and evolved. For the past three decades, Washington no longer deploys troops to Latin America but initiates a soft coup d’etat. The US has overthrown Latin American governments in the past two decades including: the 2002 failed coup in Venezuela against Hugo Chavez, the 2004 coup in Haiti, the 2008 failed coup in Bolivia, the 2009 coup again in Bolivia, the 2010 failed coup in Ecuador, the 2012 coup in Paraguay, and the 2016 coup in Brazil.
It is clear now who’s behind the recent coup in Venezuela. January 22, 2019, failed coup in Caracas was an organized attempt to bring about a national crisis with Nicolas Maduro’s opposition group, Washington and other regional right wing-countries played a role in the coup.
The event was widely reported stating that “Guaidó declares himself President of Venezuela.” Immediately, videos started circulating on social media showing a group of armed, uniformed men promising to “re-establish the constitutional order”. Social media caught up with the news and circulated the latest videos and clips of people rioting.
The very first report released by Reuters quoted a man who identified himself as-as Alexander Bandres Figueroa, the head of an opposition group, telling viewers: “Get out on to the streets … It is today. It’s today … People, get out, support us. He added a second video saying, “You wanted us to light the fuse, here we are and we light the fuse. This fight is for you, for Venezuela. This fight is for you, for Venezuela.”
In response to Figueroa, a crowd in San José de Cotiza, in northern Caracas took to the streets and set fire to dumpsters but soon were dispersed by a gas tear or arrested by police.
The Armed Forces of Bolivia strongly condemned the attempted coup, attributed it to right-wing radicals and considered it contrary to the basic principles of military discipline, honor, and traditions.
Juan Guaidó, a 35-year-old legislator from a coastal town in Venezuela, who had been playing with the idea of the presidency in his head for a while and stood against President Maduro, said “We do not wish to break up the armed forces of the country or confront them. We want the National Armed Forces to be united with the nation, the constitution and against usurpation. Our army knows that the chain of command has been torn by the usurpation of the presidential office. The National Assembly requires all members of the armed forces to actively engage in re-enforcing the constitution.”
Meanwhile, the Constitutional Court Chamber of the Supreme Court reiterated the unreliability of the constitutionally mandated law on Monday, January 21, and confirms that, in accordance with the provisions of Article 138 of the Constitution, the National Assembly has no statutory and accredited board of directors.
Colombian President Ivan Duque announced that he would wait until the head of the National Assembly (AN), Juan Guaido, officially declares himself responsible for the presidency, so that the Lima group could recognize him.
US Vice President Mike Pence pledged White House backing of Guiaido and the parliament.
It seems the ultimate goal of the operation was to display to Venezuelans worn out by economic crisis an excuse for Columbia, Brazil and the US intervention in Venezuela. However, that turned out to be a failed coup.
MNA/TT
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