Recently, Venezuela called for an emergency United Nations Security Council meeting, first reported by Agence France-Presse (AFP). In late September, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro sent a letter to Donald Trump, urging dialogue and seeking diplomatic solutions while also pushing back narratives suggesting Venezuela is a major drug-smuggling country or that the government has any control over the Venezuelan gang known as Tren de Aragua.
Maduro has an abundance of data to validate his claims, including from U.S. intelligence agencies.
In Maduro’s letter, he sought direct dialogue with special envoy Richard Grenell, who has been involved in many negotiations this year, undercutting Secretary of State Marco Rubio at least once. Meanwhile, the U.S. continues to attempt to claim that Maduro is in control of a so-called “Cartel de Los Soles,” which is not a cartel but rather a “system of corruption,” as described by InSight Crime, a largely U.S. government-funded think tank.
“During these initial months of your second administration, we have consistently sought direct communication to address and resolve any issue that arises between us,” reads the letter from the Venezuelan President. “In recent weeks, the false accusations of links with mafia and drug trafficking gangs by high-ranking Venezuelan authorities have dominated the news. This is the most egregious instance of disinformation against our nation, intended to justify an escalation to armed conflict that would inflict catastrophic damage across the continent,” continued Maduro.
Despite evidence to the contrary, the White House dismissed his letter as “full of lies.” According to Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, the Trump administration’s position on Venezuela “has not changed.” Highlighting ulterior motives behind Trump’s actions are the recent deals made with major drug-smuggling countries like Ecuador, and not addressing evidence that high-ranking government officials have direct connections with smuggling operations in Europe.
“President, I hope that together we can defeat the falsehoods that have sullied our relationship, which must be historic and peaceful, as always envisioned by our Liberator, Simon Bolivar,” read Maduro’s letter to Trump.
Instead of dialogue, the White House cut off communication with Caracas last week and notified Congress that the United States is engaged in an “armed conflict” (a legal state of war) with drug cartels, spotlighting the lack of effort to avoid a war and the push to justify an escalation to a war footing. While it seems unlikely that we’ll see U.S. troops on the ground in Venezuela, strikes on critical targets, such as infrastructure and the country’s oil facility, seem more likely.
Interestingly, the U.S. recently granted Trinidad and Tobago a license to work with Venezuela to extract offshore gas in Venezuelan boundary waters, pushed ExxonMobil to drill in the disputed Esequibo waters off the coasts of Guyana and Venezuela, and granted licenses to Chevron to ship Venezuelan oil. While this may seem duplicitous, it can be used to bolster the U.S. position against Venezuela by putting more U.S. corporate interests in the region.
Earlier this year, Maduro voiced his support for Chevron working in the country. “Chevron has been in Venezuela for 102 years, and I want it to have another 100 years of working without problems,” Maduro said. However, this signals a problem for the Trump administration. If the White House opts to bomb critical infrastructure, such as oil refineries, it will put those interests at risk of U.S. bombs.
When we consider that Venezuela sits at the Western end of major global oil belts extending from Eastern Asia, through Sudan and the Red Sea, and ending in Latin America, and that many of those countries are at war or destabilized by Western powers, the motivations become clearer. That Venezuela also has vast amounts of gold and various other critical resources shows us that the motivation is greed at the expense of human lives that will undoubtedly be lost to the U.S.’s fraudulent attempts at going to war with Venezuela.
What happens next is anyone’s guess. But Venezuelans appear ready to fight, and the administration doesn’t have the support for U.S. military intervention.
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