{"id":54360,"date":"2015-03-02T12:00:51","date_gmt":"2015-03-02T12:00:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=54360"},"modified":"2015-05-05T21:26:01","modified_gmt":"2015-05-05T20:26:01","slug":"fact-not-fiction-us-aggression-against-venezuela","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2015\/03\/fact-not-fiction-us-aggression-against-venezuela\/","title":{"rendered":"Fact Not Fiction – US Aggression against Venezuela"},"content":{"rendered":"

Recently, several different spokespersons for the Obama administration have firmly claimed the United States government is not intervening in Venezuelan affairs. Department of State spokeswoman Jen Psaki<\/a> went so far as to declare, \u201cThe allegations made by the Venezuelan government that the United States is involved in coup plotting and destabilization are baseless and false.\u201d Psaki then reiterated a bizarrely erroneous statement she had made during a daily press briefing just a day before: \u201cThe United States does not support political transitions by non-constitutional means\u201d.<\/p>\n

Anyone with minimal knowlege of Latin America and world history knows Psaki\u2019s claim is false, and calls into question the veracity of any of her prior statements. The U.S. government has backed, encouraged and supported coup d\u2019etats in Latin America and around the world for over a century. Some of the more notorious ones that have been openly acknowledged by former U.S. presidents and high level officials include coup d\u2019etats against Mohammed Mossadegh in Iran in 1953, Jacobo Arbenz in Guatemala in 1954, Patrice Lumumba in the Congo in 1960, Joao Goulart of Brazil in 1964 and Salvador Allende in Chile in 1973. More recently, in the twenty-first century, the U.S. government openly supported the coups against President Hugo Chavez in Venezuela in 2002, Jean Bertrand Aristide of Haiti in 2004 and Jose Manuel Zelaya of Honduras in 2009. Ample evidence of CIA and other U.S. agency involvement in all of these unconstitutional overthrows of democratically-elected governments abounds. What all of the overthrown leaders had in common was their unwillingness to bow to U.S. interests.<\/p>\n

Despite bogus U.S. government claims, after Hugo Chavez was elected president of Venezuela by an overwhelming majority in 1998, and subsequently refused to take orders from Washington, he became a fast target of U.S. aggression. Though a U.S.-supported coup d\u2019etat briefly overthrew Chavez in 2002, his subsequent rescue by millions of Venezuelans and loyal armed forces, and his return to power, only increased U.S. hostility towards the oil-rich nation. After Chavez\u2019s death in 2013 from cancer, his democratically-elected successor, Nicolas Maduro, became the brunt of these attacks.<\/p>\n

What follows is a brief summary and selection of U.S. aggression towards Venezuela that clearly shows a one-sided war. Venezuela has never threatened or taken any kind of action to harm the United States or its interests. Nonetheless, Venezuela, under both Chavez and Maduro \u2013 two presidents who have exerted Venezuela\u2019s sovereignty and right to self-determination \u2013 has been the ongoing victim of continuous, hostile and increasingly unfriendly actions from Washington.<\/p>\n

2002-2004<\/strong><\/p>\n

A coup d\u2019etat against Ch\u00e1vez was carried out on April 11, 2002. Documents obtained under the U.S. Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) evidence a clear role of the U.S. government in the coup, as well as financial and political support for those Venezuelans involved.<\/a>[1]<\/a><\/p>\n

A \u201clockout\u201d and economic sabotage of Venezuela\u2019s oil industry was imposed from December 2002 to February 2003. After the defeat of the coup against Chavez, the U.S. State Department issued a special fund via the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) to help the opposition continue efforts to overthrow Chavez. USAID set up an Office for Transition Initiatives (OTI) in Caracas, subcontracting U.S. defense contractor Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI) to oversee Venezuela operations and distribute millions of dollars to anti-government groups. The result was the \u201cnational strike\u201d launched in December 2002 that brought the oil industry to the ground and devastated the economy. It lasted 64 days and caused more than $20 billion in damages. Nonetheless, the efforts failed to destabilize the Chavez government.<\/p>\n

The \u201cguarimbas\u201d of 2004: On February 27, 2004, extremist anti-government groups initiated violent protests in Caracas aimed at overthrowing Chavez. They lasted 4 days and caused multiple deaths. The leaders of these protests had received training from the U.S. Albert Einstein Institute (AEI), which specializes in regime change tactics and strategies.<\/p>\n

The Recall Referendum of 2004: Both NED and USAID channeled millions of dollars into a campaign to recall President Chavez through a national recall referendum. With the funds, the group Sumate, led by multi-millionaire Maria Corina Machado, was formed to oversee the efforts. Chavez won the referendum in a landslide 60-40 victory.<\/p>\n

2005<\/strong><\/p>\n

After the victory of President Chavez in the recall referendum of 2004, the US toughened its position towards Venezuela and increased its public hostility and aggression against the Venezuelan government. Here are a selection of statements made about Venezuela by U.S. officials:<\/p>\n

January 2005: \u201cHugo Chavez is a negative force in the region.\u201d -Condoleezza Rice.<\/p>\n

March 2005: \u201cVenezuela is one of the most unstable and dangerous \u2018hot spots\u2019 in Latin America.\u201d -Porter Goss, ex-Director of the CIA.<\/p>\n

\u201cVenezuela is starting a dangerous arms race that threatens regional security.\u201d -Donald Rumsfeld, ex-Secretary of Defense.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am concerned about Venezuela\u2019s influence in the area of responsibility\u2026SOUTHCOM supports the position of the Joint Chiefs to maintain \u2018military to military\u2019 contact with the Venezuelan military\u2026we need an inter-agency focus to deal with Venezuela.\u201d -General Bantz Craddock, ex-Commander of SOUTHCOM.<\/p>\n

July 2005: \u201cCuba and Venezuela are promoting instability in Latin America\u2026There is no doubt that President Chavez is funding radical forces in Bolivia.\u201d -Rogelio Pardo-Maurer, Assistant Sub-Secretary of Defense for the Western Hemisphere.<\/p>\n

\u201cVenezuela and Cuba are promoting radicalism in the region\u2026Venezuela is trying to undermine the democratic governments in the region to impede CAFTA.\u201d -Donald Rumsfeld, ex-Secretary of Defense.<\/p>\n

August 2005: \u201cVenezuelan territory is a safe haven for Colombian terrorists.\u201d -Tom Casey, State Department spokesman.<\/p>\n

September 2005: \u201cThe problem of working with President Chavez is serious and continuous, as it is in other parts of the relationship.\u201d -John Walters, Director of the National Policy Office for Drug Control.<\/p>\n

November 2005: \u201cThe assault on democratic institutions in Venezuela continues and the system is in serious danger.\u201d -Thomas Shannon, Sub-secretary of State.<\/p>\n

2006<\/strong><\/p>\n

February 2006: \u201cPresident Chavez continues to use his control to repress the opposition, reduce freedom of the press and restrict democracy\u2026.it\u2019s a threat.\u201d -John Negroponte, ex-Director of National Intelligence.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have Chavez in Venezuela with a lot of money from oil. He is a person who was elected legally, just like Adolf Hitler\u2026\u201d \u2013 Donald Rumsfeld, ex-Secretary of Defense.<\/p>\n

March 2006: \u201cIn Venezuela, a demagogue full of oil money is undermining democracy and trying to destabilize the region.\u201d -George W. Bush.<\/p>\n

U.S. officials try to link Venezuela to Terrorism:<\/em><\/p>\n

June 2006: \u201cVenezuela\u2019s cooperation in the international campaign against terrorism continues to be insignificant\u2026It\u2019s not clear to what point the Venezuelan government offered material support to Colombian terrorists.\u201d \u2013 Annual Report on Terrorism, Department of State.<\/p>\n

June 2006: The U.S. government through the Commerce Department and U.S. Treasury imposes sanctions against Venezuela for its alleged role in terrorism and prohibits the sale of military equipment to the country.<\/p>\n

July 2006: \u201cVenezuela, under President Hugo Chavez, has tolerated terrorists in its territory\u2026\u201d -Subcommittee on International Terrorism, House of Representatives.<\/p>\n

U.S. increases its Military Presence <\/em>in Latin America:<\/p>\n

March-July 2006: The US military engages in four major exercises off the coast of Venezuela in the Caribbean Sea, with support from NATO, and based at the US air force base in Cura\u00e7ao. A permanent military presence is established in the Dominican Republic and the bases in Cura\u00e7ao and Aruba are reinforced.<\/p>\n

The US Embassy in Caracas establishes the \u201cAmerican Corners\u201d in 5 Venezuelan States (Lara, Monagas, Bol\u00edvar, Anzo\u00e1tegui, Nueva Esparta), to act as centers of propaganda, subversion, espionage and infiltration.<\/p>\n

U.S. Ambassador William Brownfield intensifies his public hostility towards the Venezuelan government, making frequent sarcastic and unfriendly comments in opposition-controlled media.<\/p>\n

NED and USAID increase funding to anti-government groups in Venezuela.<\/p>\n

2007<\/strong><\/p>\n

At the beginning of 2007, Venezuela is severely attacked in the international media & by U.S. government spokespersons for its decision to nationalize Cantv (the only national telephone company), the Electricity of Caracas and the Faja Orinoco oil fields.<\/p>\n

In May 2007 the attack intensifies when the government decides not to renew the public broadcasting concession to popular opposition television station, RCTV.<\/p>\n

A powerful international media campaign is initiated against Venezuela and President Chavez, referring to him as a dictator.<\/p>\n

Private distributors and companies begin hoarding food and other essential consumer products in order to create shortages and panic amongst the population.<\/p>\n

USAID, NED and the State Department via the Embassy in Caracas foment, fund and encourage the emergence of a right-wing youth movement and help to project its favorable image to the international community in order to distort the perception of President Chavez\u2019s popularity amongst youth.<\/p>\n

Groups such as Human Rights Watch, Inter-American Press Association and Reporters without Borders accuse Venezuela of violating human rights and freedom of expression.<\/p>\n

September 2007: President George W. Bush classifies Venezuela as a nation \u201cnot cooperating\u201d with the war against drug trafficking, for the third year in a row, imposing additional economic sanctions.<\/p>\n

September 2007: Condoleezza Rice declares the U.S. is \u201cconcerned about the destructive populism<\/em>\u201d of Chavez.<\/p>\n

2008<\/strong><\/p>\n

January 2008: Admiral Mike Mullen, Chief of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the U.S. Armed Forces meets with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, then Minister of Defense Juan Manuel Santos, U.S. Ambassador William Brownfield and the Commander General of the Colombian Armed Forces Freddy Padilla de Leon and declares during a press conference that he is \u201cconcerned about the arms purchases made by Chavez\u201d and expresses that this could \u201cdestabilize the region.\u201d<\/p>\n

John Walters, the U.S. Anti-Drug Czar meets with Uribe in Colombia, together with 5 U.S. congresspersons and Ambassador Brownfield, and declares Venezuela a nation \u201ccomplicit with drug trafficking\u201d that presents \u201ca threat to the US and the region\u201d. He also expresses his wish that the Free Trade Agreement between the U.S. and Colombia be ratified by Congress soon.<\/p>\n

Condoleezza Rice visits Colombia, together with Sub-Secretary of State Thomas Shannon and 10 congress members from the democratic party to push the FTA and back Colombia in its conflict with Venezuela.<\/p>\n

President George W. Bush in his State of the Union address emphasizes the importance of the FTA with Colombia alerts to the threat of \u201cpopulist\u201d and \u201cundemocratic\u201d governments in the region.<\/p>\n

February 2008: SOUTHCOM sends the Navy\u2019s \u201c4th fleet\u201d to the Caribbean Sea (a group of war ships, submarines and aircraft carriers that haven\u2019t been in those waters since the Cold War).<\/p>\n

The Director of National Intelligence, General Mike McConnell, publishes the Annual Threat Report, which classifies Venezuela as the \u201cprincipal threat against the US in the hemisphere\u201d.<\/p>\n

Exxon-Mobil tries to \u201cfreeze\u201d $12 billion of Venezuelan assets in London, Holland and the Dutch Antilles.<\/p>\n

A Report on Present Threats to National Security of the Defense Intelligence Agency classifies Venezuela as a \u201cnational security threat\u201d to the U.S.<\/p>\n

A Department of State report accuses Venezuela of being a country that permits \u201cthe transit of illegal drugs\u201d, \u201cmoney laundering\u201d and being \u201ccomplicit with drug trafficking.\u201d<\/p>\n

The U.S. Department of Treasury classifies three high level Venezuelan officials as \u201cdrug kingpins\u201d, presenting no formal evidence. The head of Venezuela\u2019s military intelligence, General Hugo Carvajal, the head of Venezuela\u2019s civil intelligence force, General Henry Rangel Silva, and former Minister of Interior and Justice, Ramon Rodriguez Chacin are sanctioned by the U.S. government and placed on a terrorist list.<\/p>\n

Rear Admiral Joseph Nimmich, Director of the US Joint Interagency Task Force, meets in Bogota with the Commander General of the Colombian Armed Forces.<\/p>\n

March 2008: The Colombian army invades Ecuadorian territory and assassinates Raul Reyes and a dozen others, including 4 Mexicans, at a FARC camp in the jungle near the border.<\/p>\n

General Jorge Naranjo, Commander of Colombia\u2019s National Police, declares that laptop computers rescued from the scene of the bombing that killed Reyes and others evidence that President Chavez gave more than $300 million to the FARC along with a quantity of uranium and weapons. No other evidence is produced or shown to the public. Ecuador is also accused of supporting the FARC.<\/p>\n

Venezuela mobilizes troops to the border with Colombia.<\/p>\n

The US Navy sends the Aircraft Carrier \u201cHarry Truman\u201d to the Caribbean Sea to engage in military exercises to prevent potential terrorist attacks and eventual conflicts in the region.President Bush states the U.S. will defend Colombia against the \u201cprovocations\u201d from Venezuela.<\/p>\n

Uribe announces he will bring a claim before the International Criminal Court against President Chavez for \u201csponsoring genocide and terrorism\u201d.<\/p>\n

March: President Bush requests his team of lawyers and advisors review the possibility of placing Venezuela on the list of \u201cSTATE SPONSORS OF TERRORISM<\/em>\u201d together with Cuba, Iran, Syria and North Korea.<\/p>\n

2009<\/strong><\/p>\n

May: A document from the U.S. Air Force shows the construction of a U.S. military base in Palanquero, Colombia, to combat the \u201canti-American\u201d governments in the region. The Palanquero base is part of the 7 military bases that the U.S. planned to build in Colombia under an agreement with the Colombian government for a ten-year period.<\/p>\n

2010<\/strong><\/p>\n

February: The U.S. Director of National Intelligence declares Venezuela the \u201canti-American leader\u201d in the region in its annual report on worldwide threats.<\/p>\n

February: The State Department authorizes more than $15 million via NED and USAID to anti-government groups in Venezuela.<\/p>\n

June: A report from the FRIDE Institute in Spain, funded by NED, evidences that international agencies channel between $40-50 million a year to anti-government groups in Venezuela.<\/p>\n

September: Washington ratifies sanctions against Venezuela for allegedly not cooperating with counter-narcotics efforts or the war on terror.<\/p>\n

2011-2015<\/strong><\/p>\n

President Obama authorizes a special fund of $5 million in his annual budget to support anti-government groups in Venezuela. In 2015, Obama increases this amount to $5.5 million.<\/p>\n

NED continues to fund anti-government groups in Venezuela with about $2 million annually.<\/p>\n

Each year, the US government includes Venezuela on a list of countries that do not cooperate with counter-narcotics efforts or the war on terror. Also in its annual human rights report, the State Department classifies Venezuela as a \u201cviolator\u201d of human rights.<\/p>\n

Subsequent to President Chavez\u2019s death from cancer on March 5, 2013, new elections are held and Nicolas Maduro wins the presidency. Opposition leaders hold violent demonstrations that result in the deaths of more than a dozen people.<\/p>\n

In February 2014, the violent protests resume, led by Leopoldo Lopez and Maria Corina Machado, who openly call for the overthrow of President Maduro, and over 40 people are killed. Lopez turns himself in to authorities and faces charges for his role in the violence. The U.S. government calls for his immediate release.<\/p>\n

In December 2014, President Obama imposed sanctions on more than 50 Venezuelan officials and their relatives, accusing them of violating human rights and engaging in corruption. No evidence has been presented to date to support these serious allegations. The Commerce Department also expanded sanctions against Venezuela, prohibiting the sale of \u201cany products\u201d that could be destined for \u201cmilitary use\u201d due to alleged human rights violations committed by the Venezuelan Armed Forces.<\/p>\n

January 2015: Vice President Joe Biden warns Caribbean countries that the government of President Nicolas Maduro will soon be \u201cdefeated\u201d and therefore they should abandon their discounted oil program with Venezuela, PetroCaribe.<\/p>\n

State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki condemns the alleged \u201ccriminalization of political dissent\u201d in Venezuela.<\/p>\n

February 2015: President Obama unveils his new National Security Strategy and names Venezuela as a threat and stresses support for Venezuelan \u201ccitizens\u201d living in a country where \u201cdemocracy is at risk.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anti-government leaders circulate a document for a \u201ctransitional government agreement\u201d which warns President Maduro\u2019s government is in its \u201cfinal stage\u201d and pledges to overhaul the entire government and socialist system in place, replacing it with a neoliberal, pro-business model. The document is signed by Maria Corina Machado, jailed opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez and Antonio Ledezma, mayor of Metropolitan Caracas.<\/p>\n

Days later, a coup plot against President Nicolas Maduro is thwarted and 10 active Venezuelan military officers are detained. Antonio Ledezma is arrested and charged with conspiracy to overthrow the government and the U.S. State Department issues a harsh condemnation of his detention, calling on regional governments to take action against the Maduro administration.<\/p>\n

White House spokesman Josh Earnest denies any U.S. government role in the coup attempt against Maduro, calling such allegations \u201cludicrous\u201d, but further reveals, \u201cThe Treasury Department and the State Department are considering tools that may be available that could better steer the Venezuelan government in the direction that we believe they should be headed\u201d.<\/p>\n

Note:<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/a>[1]<\/a> See The Chavez Code: Cracking U.S. Intervention in Venezuela<\/em>, Eva Golinger. Olive Branch Press 2006.<\/p>\n

_________________________________<\/p>\n

Eva Golinger<\/em>\u00a0is the author of\u00a0<\/em>The Chavez Code<\/a>. She can be reached through her\u00a0blog<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Go to Original \u2013 counterpunch.org<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

White House spokesman Josh Earnest denies any U.S. government role in the coup attempt against Maduro, calling such allegations \u201cludicrous\u201d, but further reveals, \u201cThe Treasury Department and the State Department are considering tools that may be available that could better steer the Venezuelan government in the direction that we believe they should be headed\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[53],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-54360","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-latin-america-and-the-caribbean"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54360","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54360"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54360\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54360"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54360"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54360"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}