Will The U.S. Military Decide Venezuela's Future?

Douglas Macgregor, RCD: American Military Power Should Not Decide Venezuela’s Future

The Trump Administration is backing Juan Guaidó, the 35-year-old leader of Venezuela’s National Assembly as the legitimate leader of the country.

Many in Washington, like Sen. Marco Rubio, who has urged the Trump Administration to publicly support Mr. Guaidó, are hopeful that the groundswell of support across the international community for Maduro’s political opponents will lead to Maduro’s removal from power by forces inside Venezuela. This would be the best outcome.

For others, the role of the Reagan Administration in removing Ferdinand Marcos from power in the Philippines is a useful precedent. The problem with this approach is that the Trump Administration risks getting caught in the unsavory trap of backing regime change via an internal coup d'etat cloaked in the legitimacy of the National Assembly, designed to confirm Washington’s preference regarding who enjoys the support of the Venezuelan People and who precisely should rule in Caracas.

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WNU Editor: The U.S. military is not going to intervene in Venezuela. There is no public or political will in the U.S. to be responsible for fixing the mess that is Venezuela today. Its infrastructure has collapsed, millions are destitute, and the cost that would be necessary to repair all of this would be enormous. In the end the future of Venezuela will be decided by those in Venezuela, and by its immediate neighbours.

Venezuela: Lessons From A Failed State

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro gestures next to Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel during their meeting at the Miraflores Palace in Caracas, Venezuela, May 2018. Marco Bello / REUTERS

Moisés Naím and Francisco Toro, Foreign Policy: Venezuela’s Suicide

Lessons From a Failed State

Consider two Latin American countries. The first is one of the region’s oldest and strongest democracies. It boasts a stronger social safety net than any of its neighbors and is making progress on its promise to deliver free health care and higher education to all its citizens. It is a model of social mobility and a magnet for immigrants from across Latin America and Europe. The press is free, and the political system is open; opposing parties compete fiercely in elections and regularly alternate power peacefully. It sidestepped the wave of military juntas that mired some Latin American countries in dictatorship. Thanks to a long political alliance and deep trade and investment ties with the United States, it serves as the Latin American headquarters for a slew of multinational corporations. It has the best infrastructure in South America. It is still unmistakably a developing country, with its share of corruption, injustice, and dysfunction, but it is well ahead of other poor countries by almost any measure.

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Update: ‘I’ll walk in my broken shoes’: Mom, daughter flee Venezuela (AP)

WNU Editor: My must read commentary/analysis for today.

Is Talk Of A Military Intervention In Venezuela Absurd?

Pro-government supporters attend a rally against US President Donald Trump in Caracas, Venezuela [Ueslei Marcelino/Reuters]

Al Jazeera: Talk of military intervention in Venezuela is absurd

Despite attempts by warmongers to distort reality, a peaceful solution to the Venezuelan crisis is still a possibility.

In early February, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson embarked on a Latin America tour aimed at promoting "democratic security". But just before he set off on his trip, he speculated on the possibility of a military coup in Venezuela.

"In the history of Venezuela and South American countries, it is often times that the military is the agent of change when things are so bad and the leadership can no longer serve the people," he said at an event at the University of Texas at Austin.

Tillerson's comments came six months after US President Donald Trump threatened military action in Venezuela.

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WNU Editor: To put everything into context, Puerto Rico has a population of  three million (give or take), and Venezuela has a population 10x that. To repair Puerto Rico after the hurricane will cost tens of billions .... to repair Venezuela .... albeit under different circumstances .... will cost even more .... and that does not include how deeply divided and dysfunctional Venezuelan society has become. Who wants to be responsible for that? So yes .... talk of a military intervention .... under the present circumstances .... is absurd.