Translated from Mision Verdad by Paul Antonopoulos.
The isolation of countries from the commercial circuit dominated by the US financial oligarchy was a move used several times to asphyxiate economically and financially to nation-states and, therefore, to their populations.
In Latin America, the cases of Cuba, Nicaragua and Panama are emblematic of how their conflicts and conclusions developed, except for the island that still suffers the consequences of the total blockade to its economy.
Similar embargoes have been made against Iran, Syria, Iraq, and let’s not say the rest of the countries that have been burned by the war with the United States and its allies in recent decades.
There should be no other end for Washington, after implementing economic actions of that caliber with its declared rivals, other than war or the coup. His express will.
Therefore, the space par excellence in the struggle for the US plan to happen or not is the international one. Geopolitics, also geoeconomics, take concrete expression in these economic-financial scenarios; the actors recently involved are Venezuela and its Eurasian allies China and Russia, as noted in the so-called International Conference for Democracy in Venezuela.
LIMA GROUP IN ACTION
Lima was the scene of a meeting between foreign ministers, diplomatic representatives and other operators involved in the regime change in Venezuela. The Peruvian host, Foreign Minister Nestor Popolizio, gave the conclusions of the meeting that brought together some 50 countries, the same that the United States pressed to recognize Juan Guaidó as interim president of Venezuela.
Popolizio said they expect the US blockade “will allow Nicolás Maduro’s departure from power sooner rather than later.”
“All countries have listened to the measures taken by the United States last night (Monday). They have raised them at the meeting and what we have done is take note of them, because we know they will have a real impact within the Maduro regime and we hope that allow the regime to leave sooner rather than later, “the Peruvian foreign minister told reporters.
Basically, the so-called International Conference served as a bleaching operation for Washington’s coercive measures, with John Bolton, Trump’s National Security Advisor, on the scene ensuring that the dictates are carried out together with the Secretary of Commerce, Wilbur Ross.
To prevent a reaction of rejection as has happened for decades with the Cuban blockade, Popolizio said the embargo “is not against the people of Venezuela” as does the United States and its satellites, thus boosting a narrative contrary to reality in an international scenario designed to carry out a coup d’etat.
With the effort to incorporate dozens of countries into the same agenda, the possibility of this bloc expands the measures against Venezuela as part of adhering to US foreign policy.
At this point of economic and financial persecution is that the importance of the Lima Group is noted, as long as it functions as a platform capable of orienting the aggression scenario towards the isolation produced by the United States.
In view of the fact that not all presidents and foreign ministers considered the “military option” as a legitimate one to depose the government of Nicolás Maduro, extortion and economic, financial and commercial drowning seem to be a way to his liking. It doesn’t matter if millions are affected by that.
BOLTON’S PRESSURE
Donald Trump’s National Security Advisor, a key figure in the tightening of US aggression, spoke to his diners in Peru about the declared embargo.
In effect, Bolton made it clear that the new executive order of the White House “authorizes the US government to identify and convert people who continue to support the illegitimate Nicolás Maduro regime into a target of sanctions.”
With an international public relations speech, he focused on China and Russia, to whom “we tell them that the support they provide to the Maduro regime is intolerable, particularly for the democratic regime that will replace Maduro. Russia, and especially those who control their finances, we say the following again: ‘Do not redouble a wrong bet’ “.
This means that the new measures of blockade and embargo are trying to press (some would call it blackmail) the geopolitical and geoeconomic framework that allows Venezuela to continue normally its international relations with powers such as China and Russia.
Being these two Eurasian actors the main allies of the country, which maintain a status of diplomacy, rising economy and cutting-edge military technology, the message is clear: stop supporting Venezuela or we will escalate the multiform war between the two blocks without remedy.
These are the intentions of John Bolton, who became a warrior warrior since the Bush Administration, but are those of President Trump?
THE REJECTION OF THE EUROPEAN UNION
“As regards the measures of the United States, we do not comment on this. But, in general, our position is well known and is that we oppose the extraterritorial application of unilateral measures,” said a spokesman for the Commission European on the embargo declared against Venezuela.
In this way a new voice is joined, contrary to the murderous aggressions of Washington, this time of an actor who usually accompanies the United States in his imperial incursions.
In fact, the European Union (EU) stressed that the sanctions should not affect the economic situation of the Venezuelan people and only the Maduro government. Statement impossible to sustain because since 2017, when Trump signed the executive order against PDVSA and state assets abroad, the White House measures directly affect the population, as demonstrated by a study by the American Center for Political and Economic Research .
That connects with the claim that the EU, for its part, could take additional individual restrictions against several Venezuelans, or revise these sanctions, depending on the progress of dialogue in Barbados, dynamited in advance by Washington.
Although the latest considerations seem rather hypocritical, the EU accompanies the ALBA-TCP statement in solidarity with Venezuela.
<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet”><p lang=”es” dir=”ltr”><a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/COMUNICADO?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#COMUNICADO</a> | Los países de la ALBA-TCP condenan el embargo económico anunciado por el gobierno de EEUU contra el pueblo venezolano y exigen que, en el marco del respeto del Derecho Internacional y de la Carta de la ONU, se derogue toda sanción unilateral establecida: <a href=”https://t.co/pVVpT8vFbz”>pic.twitter.com/pVVpT8vFbz</a></p>— Jorge Arreaza M (@jaarreaza) <a href=”https://twitter.com/jaarreaza/status/1159449734324641794?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>August 8, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src=”https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″></script>
Probably the total blockade of the Venezuelan economy is rejected by the world majority, however, as it has done in the last 60 years, the US government will not mind the animosity expressed by the counter-hegemonic geopolitical actors as long as it has between eyebrows and eyebrows the change of regime in Venezuela.
MEANWHILE, THE SOUTHERN COMMAND
The Russians and the Chinese were satisfied with what happened with the dialogue in Norway and then Barbados between the Venezuelan government and anti-Chavez, which were supposed to impose electoral, political and economic agreements, however the Trump embargo gave no effect to any negotiation. and Russia called to lift the blockade .
Luego de evaluar el escenario de agresión criminal del imperialismo en contra de nuestro país y al observar la indignante postura de la oposición venezolana, decidí no enviar la delegación venezolana a la mesa de diálogo en Barbados. pic.twitter.com/Am5KfiDq7Y
— Nicolás Maduro (@NicolasMaduro) August 8, 2019
On the other hand, while the White House announcement was taking place and the staging of the International Conference for Regime Change in Venezuela took place (as it really should be called), the Southern Command coordinated its efforts to “counteract illegal armed groups” in Colombia along with the local army.
#SOUTHCOM commander Adm. Craig Faller today visited the @FuerzasMilCol’s Joint Task Force Hercules in Tumaco, #Colombia, witnessed eradication efforts & got updates on efforts to counter illicit armed groups in the country. @USEmbassyBogota @mindefensa #EnduringPromise pic.twitter.com/Ke6fJOgafE
— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) August 6, 2019
#SOUTHCOM Commander Adm. Craig Faller today visited @FuerzasMilCol’s Centro de Rehabilitación Inclusiva, which provides rehabilitation services for Colombia’s wounded warriors. Faller is in #Colombia to meet w/ leaders to discuss security cooperation. @USEmbassyBogota @mindefensa pic.twitter.com/aLFpUG5Fw5
— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) August 7, 2019
The “security problems” spoken by the Southern Command refer to the factions of the FARC-EP that were not subordinated to the peace agreements and the Colombian ELN, actors related by the Center for International and StrategicStudies (CSIS, for their acronym in English) with the government of Nicolás Maduro.
Both groups are considered terrorists by the Colombian State and the United States, as proposed by the CSIS regarding the Maduro Administration.
In this regard, President Iván Duque recently and hypocritically affirmed that “Venezuela is a sanctuary for terrorists and drug traffickers”, in a new declarative affront.
Likewise, the efforts of the Southern Command to spy on Venezuelan military systems have intensified in recent weeks with illegal air raids and even through cyber warfare give a suspicious turn to Admiral Craig Faller’s personal visit to the Colombian army.
What is not surprising is that the Southern Command continues its actions of espionage and unconventional war against the FANB and Venezuelan infrastructures, given that geopolitics in this case is giving the tone of the conflict in the country irremediably.
Everything is drawn on a board where the military (including irregular warfare), the assault and economic isolation of a country and the geopolitical intersect as unconventional weapons to destroy the dialogue table, which Chavism has decided not to attend due to to the ongoing aggressions against the Venezuelan nation. It is what is happening, considering that it was a reservoir for the political solution within the Venezuelan conflict.
