by Peter Koenig
Dear Mr. President Maduro,
You have the overwhelming support of the peoples of the world.
On 25 August President Trump signed an executive order slapping Venezuela with the most sweeping economic sanctions ever. They practically paralyze Venezuela, threaten to plunge her into famine. It’s an economic coup of the worst kind. It’s outright financial warfare. For all those western nations for which such unilateral actions by the Zionist-led Washington regime has become the new normal – it is one of the highest criminal assaults a nation can impose on another nation.
To be sure, this is an act of highest treason of international law. It is a war crime, as it endangers and threatens the lives of the Venezuelan people. Furthermore, Donald Trump, has the impunity to threaten Venezuela with an overt US military invasion. ‘Overt’ – because military and secret services, i.e. CIA personnel and their proxies, trained, funded and armed, are already for years fomenting unrest and death in the streets of Caracas and elsewhere in the country.
Justifying the measures, the White House said, “[they] are carefully calibrated to deny the Maduro dictatorship a critical source of financing to maintain its illegitimate rule.” The subsequent statement by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin explains literally that these sanctions are aiming at ‘choking’ Venezuela into submission; however, that “exceptions will be made for a 30-day phase-in period and for certain transactions between the US and Venezuela, including petroleum exports and imports involving Citgo, PDVSA’s American unit, as well as financing for humanitarian efforts.”
How ‘human’ can Mr. Mnuchin, a former Goldman Sachs partner – still be called? How human is the entire Trump military entourage? How much humanity do such people have left? Three generals are calling the shots on Trump’s presidency. How more proof is needed for the world to see that Washington is run by the Pentagon – is a pure military-police state, with the populace stripped of 95% of their civil and human rights – by ever enhanced successive versions of the Patriot Act and related legislation? Humanity at its worst.
The venom and evil of our western society never stops to amaze me. How did we get here? The beginning may date back some 5000 years. But that’s a different story. We are living now, and have to eradicate this egocentric, blood-thirsty pathological greed society, greed economy, NOW – meaning now to spare as many lives as possible.
Trump’s stated reason for slamming Venezuela with sanctions – of course a lie, like everything coming out of Washington – is the recent popular vote for a National Constituent Assembly – ANC – Asamblea Nacional Constituyente (http://10.16.86.131/venezuela-the-national-constituent-assembly-is-in-place-but-the-fight-for-sovereignty-isnt-over/ ). It’s the utmost form of democracy – a National Assembly voted by the people. The opposition which vigorously boycotted the July 30, 2017 vote, are now complaining of having no seats on the ANC. Of course not. They presented no candidates.
According to both Jimmy Carter, former US President and head of the Carter Institute on monitoring international elections, as well as Noam Chomsky, MIT Professor of Linguistics and reputed scholar of geopolitics, Venezuela has the most thorough democracy in the Americas and arguably in the world. Obviously, this does not please the world’s Dictator – cum – Assassin-in-chief, the United States of America.
The largest tyrant in the world calls for atrocious ‘suffocating’ killer sanctions on a sovereign, oil- and gas rich nation in “Washington’s backyard”, under the pretext that it has gone from democracy to dictatorship which the tyranny of the north cannot tolerate, but in a gesture of generosity it grants Venezuela temporary ‘humanitarian’ relieve. What a sham!
The Trump administration, or any of his predecessors, couldn’t give a hoot about democracy and human rights in any of the countries they want to dominate. Quite to the contrary, what they want is installing chaos to be able to exploit the country’s natural resources; and that is what they consistently do. In the case of Venezuela – the world’s richest nation in hydrocarbon reserves – the objective is to retake the riches and put them back to where they were before President Chavez took over in 1998, namely under firm control of US petrol giants.
Venezuela will never tolerate this.
Curiously, it looks like Trump has been dictated to adopt a new doctrine of ‘the loots of war’. His recent declaration of increasing troops in Afghanistan – without time limit – clearly has to do with the mineral riches of that central Asian country, copper, cobalt, iron, barite, sulfur, lithium, lead, silver, zinc, niobium, and an estimated 1.4 million metric tons of rare-earth elements (REEs). The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) estimates the total resources in the Afghan grounds in excess of US$ 1 trillion. Never mind that the US has already spent between US$ 1 and 2 trillion in the 16 years of illegal war in Afghanistan, resulting in massive killings, in tens of thousands of deaths.
Photo Veterans Today 23.8.2017
In the case of North Korea, it’s iron ore, the US wants, plus, of course, strategic access to China and Russia. In Syria, it’s the infamous Qatari pipeline that would allow western petro-giants shipping trillions worth of oil and gas to Europe to the detriment of Russian’s European gas contracts. Bashar al Assad has refused the pipeline ever since the CIA approached him in 2008, and so did his father already in the early 2000s. This refusal sealed Syria’s fate. In Venezuela, the intended theft is, of course, oil and gas.
It is of little importance that Trump is contradicting himself royally. His adamant and firm pre-election promises – no longer interference in far-away countries, no longer creating ‘democracies’ US style; in the future, the US will respect other countries’ lifestyle. “We will no longer use our force in foreign lands – these days are now over”.
Wonderful. Maybe he meant it. Like perhaps he really meant making peace with Russia. This is most likely the reason why he was elected. But, would Trump be so naïve, not to know that the military industrial complex wants – no, NEEDS war? This diabolical lot wants natural resources for eternal wars.
The vast majority of people want peace not war. They want to respect Venezuela’s sovereign democracy – not interfere with it. It’s their fascist puppet leaders (sic-sic) and those who make up the Latin American regional organizations that feel obliged to submit to the demands of the naked emperor.
The extractive industry, hydrocarbons, minerals has skyrocketed exponentially since the ascent of neoliberalism in the eighties like never before in modern history. The reasons are wars and conflicts. It is estimated that today almost two thirds of the plunders of worldwide extractive industries – an unspeakable calamity to human health, local communities and the environment – goes to the international military industrial complex, with the forerunner, the US of A.
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The new sanctions on Venezuela have become “common staple”, for all those vassals around the western globe, who for some obscure reason – for fear or for earning kudos? – bend over backwards to lick President Trump’s boots. Donald Trump, the megalo-psychopath, is a mere caricature of the American electorate. Trump’s opinion and policies dance in the wind as only an immature master can muster. Hence, the world is kept confused and on her toes, never quite sure when another bomb shell will be dropped.
Dear Mr. Maduro, this act of war can only be committed by the United States of America, because it commands our western dollar-based totally fraudulent, privately run, debt and usury based, monetary system – for profit of the FED and Wall Street banksters. Period. The western world is still enslaved to it – though on a steadily declining scale, but still not free. The east, Russia, China and the entire Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is rapidly detaching themselves from the dollar hegemony.
Venezuela – in my humble opinion – has to do likewise, as soon as possible. There is no time to ponder: detach from the dollar, with whatever implications of asset and monetary loss this may have; and it will, but it will whether you do or whether you don’t. The rabid dog of Washington never lets loose, it bites to the end, and it will never release confiscated assets. Proof is time and again all through the world, just look at Iran.
Venezuela may want to cut her losses and starting from scratch, linking closely with the economies of Russia and China, as she is already doing – but may need to move on a more rigorous and radical basis. No more deals in dollars. Stop all dollar / bolívar manipulations from Miami. The dollar has to become a banned currency for the public in Venezuela, strictly enforced by law, only to be used by government authorities. This is still the casein in Cuba, and Cuba has survived 60 years – and counting. No euros either. The euro is in the same league with the dollar. It has been created as the foster child of the dollar – fiat currency, no backing whatsoever.
New transactions are to take place only in local currencies and / or the currencies of Russia and China – through respective Central Bank swaps – and international payment systems, outside of the privately-run FED, Wall Street, BIS (Bank for International Settlement) and SWIFT, for example through the Chinese International Payment System (CIPS). Russia is about to launch a similar scheme, detached from the western-dominated financial transaction modes, like SWIFT. Once the new Russian international transfer system is in place, together with the Chinese CIPS, the western monopoly on international payments – and sanctions – will be completely upset. International trade will be reset to function outside the dollar hegemony. Russia’s, as well as China’s economies are fully backed by gold.
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Under these massive and sweeping financial sanctions, imposed on Venezuela thanks to the western monetary system, Venezuela is basically barred from any international financial transactions. There is a total banking blockade directed against the Venezuelan national oil and gas company, PDVSA- Petróleos de Venezuela SA, making direct hydrocarbon transactions impossible.
It is a stranglehold on Venezuelan’s economy – a recipe for starving a country and its population into submission, weakening it to be taken over – for plundering its resources. Venezuela will NEVER allow this to happen. Citgo, PDVSA’s US subsidiary, can no longer send back dividends to Venezuela – another blow to Venezuela’s foreign exchange earnings. There is a tacit threat, Citgo’s profits in the US may be confiscated – what else than highest treason of international law is this?
Venezuela has never done any harm to another nation. To the contrary, Venezuela has stood by other countries, helping them out with low cost credits and loans, with hydrocarbon at favorable prices, when the ‘market’ was abusive with artificially driven high prices, i.e. US$ 120 / barrel and higher, with the purpose to bleed developing countries into submission. Today, crude has dropped to US$ 47 / barrel, less than half of what it was 2 years ago. The same speculators are behind this drastic drop, another willful, ill-intended manipulation. Yes, by the Saudi vassals, but even more so by Wall Street and its chief executive mobster – Goldman Sachs, to hurt especially Venezuela, Iran and Russia.
This, Mr. Maduro, is an Economic Coup. It is outright financial warfare. It is criminal, illegal and punishable according to war crimes, if there was any international court in the world not yet ‘prostituted’ by the United States and its Deep Dark Zionist handlers. Blocking bank transactions with Venezuela / debt and equity swaps with creditors / debtors is a crime. Blocking Venezuela national oil company from selling hydrocarbon abroad is a crime.
Russia’s Rosneft bought a US$ 6 billion stake in in the Venezuelan PDVSA and acquired 49.9% collateral share in its US-based CITCO. This corresponds to about a 13% of Venezuela’s total production, almost the entire contingent is resold mainly in Latin America by Russia to Venezuela’s customers, despite US ‘sanctions’.
Venezuela might want to consider negotiating concession agreements or outright sales of larger portions of PDVSA to Rosneft and other Russian and Chinese petrol giants, to be repurchased once the crisis is over. Sweden has made such arrangements, nationalizing the banking sector to overcome their banking crisis in the 1990s; an elegant alternative to bailouts. It worked. Banks were later re-privatized. Russia might sell Venezuelan petrol throughout the world, with focus on honoring contracts with Venezuelan customers. No sanctions to be expected from the White House. Who could be sanctioned if transactions took place outside of the dollar economy?
Notwithstanding Trump’s threat of a direct military intervention in Venezuela, there is also a strong possibility of a US naval blockade of Venezuela’s ports. However, today, the US is no longer the sole master of the universe. Russia and China may be invited to form a counter-blockade and even to bring troops into Venezuela.
Russia’s intervention in Syria, at the behest of President Bashar Al-Assad has worked wonders; in fact, it has liberated Syria from the siege of NATO, the US, France, UK, Germany. All criminal nations, dancing to the tune of the dying emperor. Russia’s recent air force parade over the Pacific Ocean, the Sea of Japan, the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea, with nuclear-capable Tupolev-95MS bombers in the midst of the massive and provocative US-Japan-South Korea military exercises off the coast of the Korean Peninsula, has prompted Japan and South Korea to scramble jets to escort Russia’s Tupolevs. The Russian demonstration has had an impressive impact of respect. – Why would it not be a deterrent for a US navy blockade? Or to forego Trump’s threat of direct military intervention?
Peter Koenig is an economist and geopolitical analyst. He is also a former World Bank staff and worked extensively around the world in the fields of environment and water resources. He lectures at universities in the US, Europe and South America. He writes regularly for Global Research, ICH, RT, Sputnik, PressTV, The 4th Media (China), TeleSUR, The Vineyard of The Saker Blog, and other internet sites. He is the author of Implosion – An Economic Thriller about War, Environmental Destruction and Corporate Greed – fiction based on facts and on 30 years of World Bank experience around the globe. He is also a co-author of The World Order and Revolution! – Essays from the Resistance.
Thanks for another great article. Speaking of the free market, I recently heard that wheat prices are the lowest they’ve been in 25 years. While Russia’s wheat yield is the highest it’s been in 25 years. Paul Craig Roberts explored the unusual behaviour of gold prices, only to receive no response to his query from those in charge. And then there’s the Amazon stock… I can’t help but wonder how long this can continue.
It seems always convenient to scapegoat Mr Trump & the US for Venezuela’s woes whilst overlooking the obvious – Venezuela’s problems are not primarily down to negative outside forces but rather internal ones. Maduro’s dictatorship is absolutely culpable for the economic mismanagement, electoral fraud, human rights abuses, endured by the peoples of Venezuela. Trying to blameshift & spin a narrative that suggests this is a US conspiracy is cowardly and unhelpful.
By not addressing the elephant in the room you place yourself on the side of
Repression, Criminality, and support
Maduro’s abuses.
I know of no other country upon which so much sabotage and lying has been heaped by its own opulent classes (in collaboration with their class kin in the US, Spain and Colombia) who control the distribution of most essential goods as well as most of the media, and are perfectly willing to resort to all manner of criminality in their rabid desire to cancel all the social progress made since Chavez first came to power, so the country can go back to the dream state of the good old days of economic appartheid where 80% of the population was utterly destitute. Or better still, enjoy the democratic freedoms of such places as Libya and Iraq after their glorious liberation by the indispensable cad.
Now the number one thieving, murderous, lying thug on the planet makes the usual noises about “democracy”, a word which in the massive halitosis that issues from its mouth, sounds and smells very dirty indeed. Maduro has my support. And you, Mr. Finch, can enjoy my digitus medius manus, as all trolls do.
@Peter Finch: There is plenty of proof against your laughable arguments. “Electoral fraud”? lol, what else? Let me see… oh yes: Maduro has WMD, as Saddam had, right? “The obvious” is already too obvious as to pretend blurring it like you’re trying.
@Peter Finch: There is plenty of proof against your laughable arguments. “Electoral fraud”? lol, what else? Let me see… oh yes: Maduro has WMD, as Saddam had, right? “The obvious” is already too obvious as to pretend blurring it like you’re trying.
Talking about Venezuela’s economic mismanagement is comic when it is coming from someone from the Western World as this World is bankrupted and totaly corrupted.
Human rights abuses, if you are coming from England or the US, you should keep a low profile as what both countries have done since WW2 is worse that what have done the NAZIS during that war.
Shame on you !
Let’s assume that Venezuela is the dictatorship as you describe it.
So what? Does that justify US sanctions?
Does it justify violating the sovereignty of Venezuela and its people?
Does the US sanction Saudi Arabia that does far worse?
Peter, certainly some of Venezuela’s problems are internal, but you can be 100% sure that the USG has interferred and helped to make it much worse.
It’s also not a US conspiracy, but a US fact – the USG has form, spanning maybe 120 years now.
One thing you could never accuse the US regime of doing is meddling in other countries’ affairs and trying to start civil wars, topple governments and so on right?
“Bernal, a leader of Venezuela’s governing Socialist Party, stated that “what is going on in the country responds to a plan organized systematically by the U.S. State Department and its Southern Command in order to destabilize the country and provoke a coup d’etat.”
In an interview with Prensa Capital, he urged the country’s Attorney General Luisa Ortega Diaz to invoke the Organized Crime and Terrorism Law and press charges against those responsible for the recent violence.
“The National Guard and the intelligence services have arrested a series of individuals caught shooting, burning public goods, backed with video footage, testimonies and other evidence.”
“According to a 2007 U.S. strategic document leaked by former CIA-informer Edward Snowden in 2013, Venezuela was seen as the main adversary of the United States in the Western Hemisphere. The country was listed as one of the top six “enduring targets for the NSA,” along with China, North Korea, Iraq, Iran and Russia.”
http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/US-Responsible-for-Violence-in-Venezuela-Socialist-Leader-20170515-0024.html
People must stop looking at all the world’s trouble spots and seeing the malevolent hand of the US in every single one of them !
Yep, just about everybody is seeing through the charade and wanting the US out of their affairs. This multipolarity is getting infectious . . .
“The government of Cambodia has exposed and expelled a US network attempting to interfere in the nation’s political processes. The US National Democratic Institute (NDI) was reportedly ordered to end its activities in the country and remove all of its foreign staff.
Prime Minister Hun Sen, who has ruled Cambodia for more than three decades, on Tuesday ordered the English-language The Cambodia Daily newspaper to pay taxes accrued over the past decade or face closure. The paper was founded by an American.
He also lashed out at the United States and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and accused them of funding groups attempting to overthrow his government.”
http://www.thenewatlas.org/2017/08/cambodia-exposes-expels-us-network.html
The full article discloses US covert subversion through NGOs and their funding by US corporations in Cambodia and it’s neighbours.
The empire is meeting resistance and outright defiance now on an increasing scale and involving an ever expanding number of countries.
Peter, you write like a spokesman for the empire.
There has been economic warfare against Venezuela for decades.
There has been foreign-sponsored subversives controlling the media and actively misrepresenting the facts for decades.
Can’t you understand that your own actions are contributing to the rampant destruction of good, and it will eventually swallow all of us. If you are in the U.S.A. you should know that because of the many that are contributing to the destruction, all of the many good things that has come from the U.S.A. may be destroyed, and probably a lot sooner than a denial-distorted mind can imagine.
I remember a scene in a film by Pilger, I think where ”the brave oppressed people were shooting at the government thugs on a bridge and after shooting, dodging back behind a wall in order to avoid the flying chaves’ socialist bullets”.
The chaves’ thugs were supposedly down below the bridge shooting at everything in sight. It was probably the 2002 coup time.
When the camera pulled back you could see that the street below the bridge was ”empty” !
A completey staged scene for western audiences of course, without the camera pull back to show it was all fake news.
It made an indelible impression on me because the obvious tv / cnn / bbc etc’s broadcasts would have portrayed it undoubtably as chaves’ ditatorial violence putting down a genuine democratic revolt. It was one of those moments when scales falls from one’s eyes.
And before Maduro it was Chavez’ fault.
This is actually from a mainstream British newspaper, always pro-US and only rarely a little critical –
“…observers of the region point out that the US has a long history of seeking to interfere in the politics of Venezuela, as well as elsewhere in Latin America.
In addition to supporting those who ousted Mr Chavez in 2002, the US poured hundreds of thousands of dollars to his opponents via the so-called National Endowment for Democracy.”
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/venezuela-accuses-us-of-plotting-coup-as-washington-warns-of-imminent-collapse-a7029386.html
A properly constituted Tribunal adjudging the US for it’s crimes against the peoples of the world would have a queue of litigants comprising almost the entire membership of the United Nations
Maduro’s dictatorship is absolutely culpable for the economic mismanagement, electoral fraud, human rights abuses, endured by the peoples of Venezuela.
economic mismanagement:
You’re talking of something about food stamps for the deplorables and billions for the MIC? Or do you have in mind the socialism for the banks and capitalism for the masses that had been practiced to resolve the banking crisis of 2007?
electoral fraud
Like the stolen candidacy of Bernie Sanders?
human rights abuses
Like the enhanced interrogation program? Or did you think of the drone program (using military action without any war declaration, even in countries that are in no official conflict with the US) whilst writing? Sending US troops into Syria (without any proper UN mandate) isn’t entirely legal. You may want to object that military action doesn’t equal human rights abuses, but if you look closer you may realize that the actions of the soldiers could be described es such – killing and maiming others without being at war. The track record of US (private) prisons isn’t glorious either. Are the procedures (shoot first, ask later; choke holds; …) of US law enforcement compatible with human rights?
Always remember: When you’re pointing fingers, three are pointed in your direction!
Maybe everything you say is true, though I doubt it. The point is, however, that even if Maduro’s government is responsible for the present chaos, what has this got to do with the United States? Since when is it okay to destabilise and meddle in another country, directly or indirectly, because of its allegedly failed economic, social and political policies? Venezuela does not threaten the US, so how and why does the US slap on crippling sanctions designed to economically strangle that country? This is against both international law and US constitutional law.
And please don’t give me the R2P spread of democracy bullshit. This is pure cant. If the US is so concerned about human rights it might start looking at some of the regimes it supports around the world like Ukraine and Saudi Arabia. The hypocrisy is nauseating.
Most people here can’t seem to understand there isn’t only one evil in the world and only one cause to every issue. Perhaps, no matter how sad it sounds, BOTH the Maduro dictatorship and the US interference are motivated by misplaced values, utter incompetence and deep below, raw greed and pride. As the communist ideal of utter mediocrity and dictated altruism faces the selfish octopus of imperialism, the Venezuelan people (and the people of all the americas) suffer from a double storm of epochal proportions. It’s the Zeitgeist of our time and it will be frowned upon in the centuries to come, no doubt.
Yeah, siding with Yanqui ghouls is sooo brave!
So what if Venezuela is a dictatorship?
So what if (some of) the country’s problems are of its own making?
So what?
How does that relate to imposing sanctions to bring about regime change?
This whole USA “regime change” playbook is so tiresome.
Your own little performance equally so.
Actually, disgusting.
Mr. Finch, I wonder what brings you to this blog.
Do hang out here more often,
so that others can learn more about your mission.
Which looks like, trolling against sovereign Venezuela.
Katherine
Russia already has a 49.9% stake in PDVSA via a Rosneft mortgage agreement. That should stop any attempts by the Zionists to loot it on the cheap. It has also loaned $6 billion to Venezuela. Venezuela failed to make a repyment as a result of the US economic warfare, which Russia allowed to roll over. That suggests Russia has some degree of long term confidence in Venezuela’s economic position.
Venezuela’s energy sales problem arises from the nature of its oil – it can only be processed at a few refineries designed for heavy oil. The main one is in the US. That is another reason why the US has granted itself exceptions to the sanctions. Maybe China could use some of its excess USD to build a heavy oil refinery in Venezuela, so the Venzuelans could ship light oil and the heavy byproducts – tar, bitumen, etc? This would untie the binds to the US and totally screw with the Zionists.
In Syria, Putin waited until he was convinced that Assad would stand and that he had significant military support behind him. The reason being Russia didn’t want to get bogged down in something that might fail or to simply be used by the Syrians for no return. The CIA-regime change street actions in Venezuela failed partly because the CIA uses a playbook and it is likely that observors will have provided advise on how to deal with the coup plotters. They also failed because Maduro and the military showed they were committed to making a stand. So I think Maduro/Venezuela may have passed the test.
“It has also loaned $6 billion to Venezuela. Venezuela..” – never loan money to a socialist that’s your lesson right there. In the socialist’s mind all money is a “common good” so by giving him your money he thinks “hey it my money now, so I owe you $hit!”. And even if a socialist wanted to repay you he most likely couldn’t because he wasted your money and his time producing nothing of value.
Othmar, it sounds like you lent money to a young adult leftist son, daughter, niece or nephew of college age or just a bit more, and are extrapolating from that disappointing experience in micro economics loan capital write-downs…er write-offs…… to adopt a very abused rightist ideology-driven macroeconomics.
Russia, on the other hand, may have a bit more experience than you in lending to socialists on a macro scale, and be in very little to ZERO need of your micro-advice.
Afghanistan alone cannot sustain MIC+Co..Syrian venture got rubbished by the Ruskies,KIM is nuclear-tipped(caution here). Quick,Trump,we got locate ,devour and loot another entity…ooh,Venezuela……..Whose next?
Well said, PK.
‘Opposition lobbied in US for sanctions, now they blame Maduro’ – Venezuelan FM
https://www.rt.com/news/401024-venezuela-arreaza-us-sanctions-opposition/
“The Venezuelan opposition has been “lobbying for sanctions” in Washington against the Maduro government, and now blames him for the economic sanctions imposed by Donald Trump, Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza told RT.
In an interview with RT Spanish, Arreaza addressed the massive wargames which kicked off across Venezuela earlier on Saturday, bringing together 900,000 people, including 200,000 troops and hundreds of thousands of civilian militia members.
“All the people of Venezuela, all high-ranking military personnel are to take part in these drills to prepare to protect us, our territory, our sovereignty, including by military means,” he told RT after meeting with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in New York.
“I hope that we won’t experience such barbarity in our age,” the minister said, but warned that “if Venezuela is attacked, rest assured that the Armed Forces of the Bolivarian Republic, the people of Venezuela, would defend their territory, their integrity, dignity, independence and sovereignty to their last breath.”
“We will take all possible steps to protect our citizens. We have all the resources required to do so,” Arreaza said.
In case the US the sanctions have a negative effect on Venezuela’s economy and its population, “the responsibility for this will be borne exclusively by US President Donald Trump and the military-industrial complex, which is in control of US policy,” he added.
According to the diplomat, the country’s pro-American opposition has played a key role in restrictions being introduced against Caracas.
“So that you understand what kind of opposition we have – they have been lobbying, going to Washington to achieve those sanctions against Venezuela,” he said.
“Now they are trying to convince the people of Venezuela that the sanctions are the fault of (Venezuela’s president) Nicholas Maduro. This is completely absurd… and the world must know this,” the FM added.
Maduro’s political rivals have “betrayed their homeland” by urging sanctions against their own country and should be held accountable for this, he said.
“We need a serious opposition in Venezuela… which loves its homeland despite all the ideological differences that we have,” Arreaza explained.
Caracas wants the international organizations, like the UN, to “performed the function, which they were created for” and condemned the US actions, the FM stressed.
“The most natural reaction would be to recognize that sovereignty of our country must be respected, curb attempts of interfering into the internal affairs of Venezuela and refrain from adopting a policy of unilateral sanctions that violate the principles of international law,” he said.”
It seems ironic – at least in my eyes – that two days ago president Maduro has asked Pope’s help against US military threat. Interesting perception on his part.
The Vatican does not have a good record in helping the masses of little people, in fact it has considerable form and investment interests in backing those who believe that might is right.
Francis personally turned in some of his own priests (liberation theologists) to the Argentine military dictatorship state, so unless he’s had a radical change of heart I wouldn’t get my hopes up if I were Maduro.
The underground war between Venezuela and the US big oil cartel confirmed through WikiLeaks
http://bit.ly/2wfeXpJ
@ P Finch…Mismanagement by the Venezuelan government? It is a paragon of management virtue compared to a USA where it’s military can’t account for probably more than than estimated Eight Trillion. or Housing and Urban Development where hundreds of billions are unaccounted for. If not for abusing the privilege of owning the printing press that produces Federal Reserve Notes the USA would long have succumbed and sunk beneath the waves of its debt joining Greece in her misery at the hands of the international banking cabal. Count your blessings Mr Finch and open your eyes to the greed and devastation of other peoples lives caused by the insatiable greed and war making on others so that you may tag along and pronounce a purported economic superiority as a fiction. Oh that America would do for her people what the Chavez Revolution has done for its peoples but to you this is a management mistake as profit is King under neo-liberal policy. Just don’t lose your job or have your retirement benefits confiscated as the descent in America is rather precipitous and rocky at the bottom wherein second and third world standards are the norm in the crappy USA.
I have nothing against the wealthy in general, but having met the wealthy of South America and Mexico, and having seen how they treat the workers who serve them when they go shopping for luxury goods, etc, I am sure that these rich Venezuelans want to destroy the poor, and anyone who represents the poor, in that country.
Thanks for your observation. I do tend to have something against anyone, rich or poor, who badly treat the working people who serve them. Having worked in a number of very different jobs throughout my life, from farm labor to manufacturing to health care to the glass business to the “hospitality” industry, I’ve been treated by people of high station and low both respectfully and awfully. For me, where this negative attitude hurt the most was when it came from people who I could tell were no better off than I was socioeconomically. You’d think there would be a little more solidarity between us working folks, but alas, often there is not. On the other hand, I’ve worked for a handful of people who were not born rich but who through hard work and perseverance (and yes, being in the right era of general prosperity) did pretty good for themselves and, remembering where they came from, didn’t look down their noses at working people. Hopefully there are some of these people in Venezuela, and maybe they can help counteract the destructive attitudes towards the working poor. My prayers are for all of the people of that country who are working to make it a better place.
This would be a great time for Russia to enlarge the CSTO and bring in some American countries, namely Cuba (due to its closeness to the US), Venezuela (because of its oil), and Nicaragua (because of the potential Nicaragua Canal). All three countries’ governments have also had long time Russia-friendly geopolitical orientations. And most of all, it would be a great response by Russia to NATO’s hostile expansion into eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union.
I’m Colombian and I’ve been following the Venezuelan crisis very closely since some years ago, based on the information receive by people I know and who live in the city of Cúcuta in the Colombian-Venezuelan border and relatives who had fled the country seeking refuge in Colombia and sometimes from the local media. I think the author of this article has no idea what is really happen in Venezuela by denying several critical facts about the crisis or he is just and immoral guy who just pretend blatantly deny the widespread corruption of the Venezuelan government. Although we know the Venezuelan crisis in great part is a consequence of the fight from the local oligarchies and the USA government against de chavismo since the very beginning of the so called revolution in order to keep their privileges one must be aware of the other factors involved in the situation like the incredible corruption of the government at all levels, the widespread negligence in the administration of the country which has produced the humanitarian crisis that we as neighbors are already feeling. The food is controlled by a giant mafia of chavistas who uses the hunger as a weapon of social control, that silly story of the owners of the stores in control of the food and hoarding it to raised their prices is the government version to cover up their own mediocrity and corruption, they are the ones in control of the few dollars that allow the food imports, because this socialist geniuses managed to destroyed the local production at all levels by indiscriminately expropriating the factories and kicking out the owners and the people who knew the business and replacing them with assholes with a red beret. So well done!! Now reap what you sow and don’t pretend to put all the blame in the evil empire or the local oligarchies, because only naive people can believe that. Relatives of my wife who fled the Venezuela selling their properties for bargain prices to chavistas who are the only ones with money to buy the properties of the people fleeing the country, told us about the incredible levels of violence and corruption all around the country and the total indifference and many times complicity of the police and the National Guard in many crimes, stories than are corroborated all the time from the ordinary people who are fleeing the country in total desperation because the rich ones fled many years ago, not to mention the high ranking Venezuelan military involved directly in the cocaine traffic with the Colombian narcos taking out the drug through the Venezuelan country in total impunity, so mister Koening are you a naïve person or just another corrupt liberal pretending to fight for the justice and peace?
Maduro should circumvent the USD and get into bitcoins…
Please advance to 36:30, where Michel Choussudovsky begins his discussion of Venezuela, and discusses the breakdown of relations between the Bolivarian Republic and Cuba.
The Broader Global Crisis – Michel Chossudovsky, #372
https://soundcloud.com/guns-and-butter-1/the-broader-global-crisis-michel-chossudovsky-372
Long time supporters of the Cuban psyop and fairy tale will be greatly disappointed. The regime of Raul Castro recently allowed a German NGO, the Hanns Seidel Foundation, to hold a conference concerning Venezuela within Cuba, with no participation by Venezuelans themselves, and which predictably turned into a Bizzaro-world rally for Big Brother approved perceptions of reality, with no contradictory arguments being offered by Cuban acamedicians or members of their foreign policy establishment.
In fact they were being schooled.
The Hanns Seidel Foundation is presently helping to organize the destabilization of Venezuela, now officially holder of the largest reserves of oil in the world, undoubtedly at the behest of the CIA, since US based NGO’s like the National Endowment For Democracy are generally banned from Cuba and Venezuela.
Which makes Cuba a party to the destabilzaion of Venezuela.
I’ve made myself unpopular with some overly credulous supporters of the Cuban ideation, where based on personal experience and a non-elitist view of history, I compare Castro’s slave colony to the Jesuit Reductions of the 15th to 17th centuries, existing in modern day Paraguay, Argentina, Brazil and Bolivia, which were eventually dismantled by decree of the Spanish King, he being fearful fearful of the enormous wealth accruing to the Society of Jesus via these well planned and extremely lucrative plantation societies.
The Jesuit Reductions, as a precursor to all modern socialist societies, were an important model for the Anglo Zionist oligarchy, who made use of it in the Platonic tradition of developing social schema for Utopian societies, wherein Karl Marx, husband of Judy von Westphalen, who was herself the sister of the Prussian Foreign minister, composed Das Kapital within the confines of the British Museum reading room, under the stewardship of British diplomat and MP David Urquhart, several years after Republican revolutions swept Europe in 1848, later reframed as an uprising of the Workers of the World, all together representing pioneering developments of British deployed Colour Revolution Technology, in an effort to achieve the goals of British Imperialism.
Read it again, if you want to begin to understand how world zionism operates.
@Lumpentroll: I’m not sure what you’re trying to say. Are you saying that Marxism is a tool of British imperialism and Zionism?
I’ve heard that argument before … Henry Makow claims that Marx was distantly related to the Rothschilds.
Could you post a link regarding the Jesuit Reductions? I’m not familiar with them.
Here’s a start, not bias-free of course, but generally good enough.
I’m not too fond of Jesuits myself, despite being taught by them, so I’ll keep my mouth shut.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesuit_reduction
Actually, the pod cast was good, particularly the info on the deterioration of the revolutionary leadership under Raoul, since Fidel’s death. That is where the Seidel Foundation moved in.
Worth a listen.
Personally, I have immense regard for the intellect of Marx and while he had a patron, believe him clever enough to have written what he wanted.
The BM Reading Room is still open to all and sundry who wish to do research and write there, from intellectuals to pulp fiction novelists–nothing sinister there at all, though us Brits are the most surveilled people in the world I believe.
I agree that Marx was clever and I’m sure he was selected for the job because of his talents.
The BM reading room was recently closed to the public, I’m afraid.
It was moved, with its books, a few steps down the same road from the old building when that was refurbed and then used an exhibition space. Open access.
When the work is complete the books will move back into the original Reading Room.
London changes constantly, day by day. Sometimes I go to walk down a well known street and it has disappeared, been re-routed, built on? but definitely changed.
My previous comment should read 16th to 18th centuries.
Peter Koenig’s disgust, anger and frustration is obvious in this article.
He uses the word “war” 11 times and the word “crime/criminal” 7 times..
I have no other words than to agree with these feelings of injustice and oppression being committed time and time again.
Some words from the Quran and several Hadiths:
Our Lord! make us not a trial for those who practice oppression
[surah Yunus; 10: 85]
O you who believe, be persistently standing firm for Allah as witnesses in justice, and do not let the hatred of a people prevent you from being just. Be just, for that is nearer to righteousness. Fear Allah, for Allah is aware of what you do.
[Surat Al-Ma’idah 5:8]
Beware of the supplication of the oppressed, for there is no barrier between it and Allah.
[Source: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 4090, Grade: Agreed upon]
The supplications of three persons are never turned away: a fasting person until he breaks his fast, a just ruler, and the supplication of the oppressed which is raised by Allah above the clouds, the gates of heaven are opened for it, and the Lord says: By my might, I will help you in due time.
[Source: Sunan al-Tirmidhī 3598, Grade: Sahih]
Allah will support the just state even if it is led by unbelievers, but Allah will not support the oppressive state even if it is led by believers.
[Source: Majmū’ Fatāwá 28/63]
Meyssan gives a deep understanding of the whole question
http://www.voltairenet.org/article197541.html
Hi Peter Koenig,
You claim that “Blocking Venezuela national oil company from selling hydrocarbon abroad is a crime. ” I totally agree! However, these these sanctions are NOT an oil embargo. This is entirely different scenario to the one that Iraq or my country, Serbia, were subjected to, where an oil embargo was imposed (imports and exports) which led to a complete and total economic chaos and collapse.
The sanctions on Venezuela restrict debt restructuring by the state oil company PDVSA. They do not block the company from accessing U.S. credit for fuel transportation. Citgo , the Venezuelan-owned company in the US can still access US credit.
Here is the link that describes what the sanctions are : (I suggest you put on mute as there is an automatic video of that awful Nikki Hawley talking)
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/not-an-oil-embargo-venezuela-exports-citgo-shielded-from-new-sanctions/article/2632583
In your letter you have asked Maduro to “stop all dollar/ Bolivar transaction”..are you aware that Maduro is swapping the sovereign gold to OBTAIN dollars? Are you aware that he is even using a US bank to do this (CITIbank)?
Regarding the Bolivar- USD peg, there is a large discrepancy between the official rate and the black market rate. The peg enriches only the financial intermediaries who are dealing in the black market. It doesn’t help the ordinary people. Why doesn’t Maduro remove the peg, and use the sovereign gold to subsidise food prices? Instead he has decided to go for price controls, but which farmer wants to sell their produce at below production prices?
Chavez and Maduro have nationalised the farming industry… So who is now to blame for these domestic food shortages ?
Venezuela should look into exporting their oil to Asia and other markets. By going to Asia, they would need to a sell at discount to offset higher transportation costs, but they would effectively bypass the US financial sanctions.
I have the deepest respect for the beautiful Venezuelan people. I hope their economy recovers in spite of all these difficulties. I hope they will retain their sovereignty from the empire as far too many of us have been destroyed.
Hurricane Harvey hits US oil production hub.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-08-25/harvey-strengthens-as-gasoline-surges-on-texas-refinery-threat
Thats what you get for sanctioning and destroying entire nations around the world. Do you believe your injustice and oppression will go on ?
The prayers of millions of orphans, widows and eldery who’s lives have been destroyed by the US leadership will not go unanswered.
Very well said, Mr Koenig.
seems relevant…
the idea is, as Cuba did, to do it to the empire…to use the attacker’s force by turning it to solidarity and counterforce,,, It will probably be messy, but it is like porno – you know who and what but not when…somebody get it.
telesur editorial…
“…The popular victory of our Comandante Chavez in December 1998 opened the way towards dismantling the hegemonic model so as to use the nation’s oil income for endogenous development, economic diversification and building an egalitarian society….”
http://www.telesurtv.net/english/opinion/Venezuela-The-Hour-of-Liberation-Has-Arrived-20170828-0020.html
Fidel’s gunna smile down, beaming…one bay pf pigs, one Syria…one too many…?
LZ
It is pretty simple why it is happening, and i didn’t read the explanation in the article so let me provide it to you: Venezuela and similar countries are a threat to capitalism. It is that simple.
Capitalism is a failed and unethical system that is already showing the signs of its irreversable decline to Fascism (look at current USA, the only proof you need). But the 1% benefits from Capitalism and don’t want it gone. If the 99% realizes that there is a better way, the 1% won’t be able to live paradise on earth by exploiting the 99%’s labour. So countries that practice, or at least attempt to practice, Socialism, must be destroyed. They are an “advertisement” of Socialism and we can’t have that, can we?
So what do they do? They use every tool at their disposal to make the poor socialist country fail, whether it is powerful allies inside the country, their own agents, sunctions, or even war, then use that “failure” to claim “see? Socialism collapsed, it doesn’t work”.
The reality is different. Capitalism collapsed. AGAIN. In 2008. And the “super-efficient” private interests needed a state-funded bailout. But it didn’t solve anything, and nothing can be done to save Capitalism. Perhaps war can distract people, who knows. But if you want a message to take home, it is that Capitalism is the problem, Socialism is the answer, and the elites not wanting Socialism is the explanation for their actions.
This is a correct view about how the world out there views Cde President Muduro and his progressive approach to defend the masses of 🇪🇨. In defence of the legacy left by Comandante Chavez against imperialism by the Western forces under the direct control of the Whitehouse. The people of Venezuela have our greatest support as internationalist of the world against fascist tendencies of all kinds and we shall forever continue with our solidarity support against orligachy seeking to economically enslave the people of Venezuela for the benefit of their own souls and the Trump administration. In solidarity we shall stand and defend the right to self determination of the people of Venezuela 🇻🇪 Including those of 🇨🇺 and the entire world who identifies themselves with the left agenda. Aluta Continua
I’m not getting how people of Venezuela can’t analyze who is conspiracing n making the people against Nicolas Mzdura n government, who wants to invade this country what is the interest ONLY PETROL, Y VENEZUELIANS can’t realize this,opposition leader coming with his wife n child n posing he will bring great change what do think when he conquer Allah forbid then what happen again conspiracies starts people set against him n then invade who is at the back of opposition leader might he be given so much money that he will never open mouth, so please UNITE.