JRL NEWSWATCH: “Venezuela Sets the Stage for a Putin-Trump Confrontation; In the past, Trump has taken hard stances against Russia, only to back away” – Moscow Times/ Lincoln Mitchell, Tinatin Japaridze

February 15, 2019 JRL Russia List JRL NewsBlog, Latin America, Venezuela

Venezuela Map, adapted from image at cia.gov

“… the economic tragedy in Venezuela has evolved into a full-blown political crisis. Demands for President Nicolas Maduro’s ouster, now fronted by the head of the opposition-controlled National Assembly Juan Guaido, have reached fever pitch as years of his misrule have destroyed Venezuela’s once prosperous economy. … the decision [by Trump] to recognize Guaido as the legitimate Venezuelan leader is exactly what we would have expected from any recent president …. Trump’s position stands in sharp opposition to the view from Moscow. As one of its strongest economic partners, particularly with ties in crude oil, loans and arms sales, Russia is unlikely to abandon Venezuela …. Kremlin-controlled oil company, Rosneft, has provided billions in credit lines and loans to Venezuela, and remains an active financial backer of the Maduro government. … Putin has warned the U.S. against aggressively supporting the Venezuelan opposition and criticized Trump’s suggestion that U.S. military intervention could be an option …. The wise move for Trump would be to maintain his current course on Venezuela. Increased pressure from Russia on one side and from Congress on the other may, however, put Trump in a very difficult position ….”