Tag Archives: Venezuela

Florida Politics reports: A former Miami congressman who signed a $50-million consulting contract with Venezuela’s socialist government not only did no apparent work, but also channeled a large chunk of the money to a yacht company on behalf of a fugitive billionaire, according to new allegations in a civil suit. The accusations against former Congressman David Rivera come in a …

The Miami Herald reports: Snipers from Russia and other countries hostile to the United States are competing in war games being held this week in Venezuela in events described as Olympic games for soldiers that were organized not only to show that Moscow still has friends but also that some of them are in Latin America. The international war games …

Mediaite reports: According to a transcript of the interview provided by CBS, Esper told correspondent Norah O’Donnell, “it’s important to our country, it’s important to the republic, the American people, that they understand what was going on in this very consequential period — the last year of the Trump administration.” “And to tell the story about things we prevented: really …

The Washington Post reports: Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro offered Sunday to pay for coronavirus vaccines doses with oil shipments, saying in a televised address that the cash-strapped yet oil-rich nation would dedicate some of its production toward acquiring the shots. “Venezuela has the oil tankers, it has customers ready to buy oil from us. It would devote part of its …

The New York Daily News reports: Facebook is freezing Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s account for 30 days, after he claimed without any scientific evidence that an herbal solution could prevent and treat COVID-19. Maduro posted on the social media network a video in which he claimed that Carvativir, an oral solution derived from the common garden herb thyme, could cure …

The Insider report: President Donald Trump claimed that it would be “cool” to invade Venezuela because the nation was “really part of the United States,” according to a new book by former national security adviser John Bolton. In 2019, Trump expressed he would consider an outright quarantine or blockade of Venezuela in an effort to dispose of President Nicolas Maduro’s …

Bloomberg News reports: Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido plans to attend President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address on Tuesday as a guest of the White House, according to three people familiar with the matter. Guaido’s attendance provides a high-profile platform for the Venezuelan National Assembly leader as he seeks to revive support for his bid to oust President …

Bloomberg News reports: When Erik Prince, a major Trump donor and private security mogul, traveled to Caracas in November for secret talks with Venezuela’s vice president, he was not, it turns out, the central figure orchestrating the meetings. That person was a controversial British deal-maker by the name of Ian Hannam. Hannam, a former JPMorgan banker, arranged the trip as …

The Associated Press reports: Erik Prince, a major Republican donor and founder of controversial security firm Blackwater, has been referred to the U.S. Treasury Department for possible sanctions violations tied to his recent trip to Venezuela for a meeting with a top aide of President Nicolas Maduro, two senior U.S. officials said. There’s no indication that Prince, whose sister is …

The Washington Post reports: The international call came in September 2018, after months of rising tension between the United States and Venezuela, a key strategic player in South America. On one end of the line was Venezuela’s socialist president, the pariah leader of a disintegrating economy whom President Trump’s administration was seeking to isolate. On the other end: the U.S. …

The Huffington Post reports: The Venezuelan government blamed the “supremacist elite” in power in Washington, saying that violent acts had found “sustenance” in the “racial discrimination and hate” fueled against immigrants. It suggested avoiding crowded places, noting the “inexcusable” and “indiscriminate” possession of firearms by Americans. It also named several U.S. cities to avoid because of their rates of violence, …

The Washington Post reports: President Trump is questioning his administration’s aggressive strategy in Venezuela following the failure of a U.S.-backed effort to oust President Nicolás Maduro, complaining he was misled about how easy it would be to replace the socialist strongman with a young opposition figure, according to administration officials and White House advisers. The president’s dissatisfaction has crystallized around …

Reuters reports: U.S. Vice President Mike Pence is set on Tuesday to offer new incentives to Venezuela’s military to turn against President Nicolas Maduro, responding to an attempted uprising that fizzled out last week, a senior administration official told Reuters. Maduro – who has said Guaido is a puppet of Washington – has sought to show that the military remains …

CNN reports: The Trump administration is looking for ways to financially bolster Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido, who has been recognized by the US as the country’s interim president, with an influx of cash, which could involve freeing up frozen assets or loans. The initiative is meant to help Guaido pay Venezuelan military and government workers, three US officials have …

CNN reports: CNN has been taken off the air in Venezuela by the government. DirecTV, Net Uno, Intercable, and Telefónica all received orders from Venezuela’s government regulator Conatel to block CNN. CNN en Español was blocked in Venezuela in 2017. CNN obtained a video that appears to show the exact moment it was taken off the air by the Venezuela …

Axios reports: Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó posted a video to Twitter on Tuesday calling for a military uprising while surrounded by soldiers and a detained activist, per the AP. Guaidó’s stance against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has so far been relatively peaceful, but Tuesday’s video marks a significant escalation in his strategy — which the Trump administration “fully supports,” …

The Associated Press reports: Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido [photo] has taken to the streets with detained activist Leopoldo Lopez and a small contingent of heavily armed soldiers in a military uprising. “This is the moment of all Venezuelans, those in uniform and those who aren’t,” said Lopez in his first public appearance since being detained in 2014 for leading …

“It’s time for action and the OAS, the Organization of American States, needs to come together. We have very effective drones. We have what they call Hellfire missiles that can be fired from drones and I believe its time to give Mr. Maduro a little taste of what he’s been doing to the opposition.” – Pat Robertson, openly calling for …

Reuters reports: U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday called on Russia to pull its troops from Venezuela and said that “all options” were open to make that happen. The arrival of two Russian air  force planes outside Caracas on Saturday believed to be carrying nearly 100 Russian special forces and cybersecurity personnel has escalated the political crisis in Venezuela. “Russia …

Bloomberg reports: A second blackout in less than a week occurred in Venezuela on Wednesday, leaving the vast majority of the country’s residents without internet connections or other electrical needs. A graph tracking disruptions to the country’s internet connectivity by NetBlocks.org showed about 91 percent of the country offline just before 6:00 a.m. EST on Wednesday, the worst outage the …