US Sanctions War on Venezuela

by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org - Home - Stephen Lendman)

Washington uses illegal sanctions as weapons of war without declaring it - targeting sovereign independent governments, wanting exploitive/predatory pro-Western regimes replacing them.

Ahead of Venezuela's Sunday presidential election, the Trump administration targeted United Socialist Party of Venezuela vice president/former National Assembly speaker Diosdado Cabello, his brother Jose (head of Venezuela's tax department), and Cabello's wife, Marleny Josefina Contreras (tourism minister).

They're sanctioned on fabricated charges of drug trafficking, extortion, money laundering and embezzlement - no evidence cited proving the accusations.

Even if true, no nation may legally interfere in the internal affairs of others - except in self-defense if attacked. 

Neither Venezuela or any other countries threaten US security. Washington threatens all sovereign independent nations not submissive to its will.

Cabello strongly denied charges against him, calling them part of an anti-Bolivarian US-led conspiracy against him, his family and government.

Separately he tweeted, calling Trump's action "immoral sanctions of imperialism. It only shows we're going in the right direction."

His brother Jose tweeted: "Sanctions are an honor and they make us stronger." 

Last February, the Trump administration illegally sanctioned  Venezuelan Vice President Tareck El Aissami - on fabricated narco-trafficking charges.

At the time, he denounced US charges against him, saying "when I headed the public security corps of my country, in 2008-2012, our fight against drug cartels achieved the greatest progress in our history and in the western hemisphere, both in terms of the transnational drug trafficking business and their logistics structures," adding:

"Venezuelan anti-drug enforcement authorities under my leadership captured, arrested and brought 102 heads of criminal drug trafficking organizations not only to the Venezuelan justice but also to the justice of other countries where they were wanted."

Venezuela combats illicit drugs trafficking effectively. America has a long sordid history of working with drug cartels, notably through the CIA, major US banks profiting from laundering dirty money.

US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) operations in Venezuela are "connect(ed) to criminal drug organizations," Aissami explained, calling trafficking in illicit drugs a "cross-border crime against humanity."

In March, the Trump administration illegally sanctioned Venezuela's petro crytrocurrency, created last December, backed by Venezuelan crude oil reserves, an attempt to strengthen the nation's "monetary sovereignty."

By executive order, Trump banned "(a)ll transactions related to, provision of financing for, and other dealings in, by a United States person or within the United States, any digital currency, digital coin, or digital token, that was issued by, for, or on behalf of the Government of Venezuela…"

US war on Venezuela's social democracy is unrelenting, its sanctions on Cabello and others coming ahead Sunday's presidential election, an 11th hour attempt to try defeating Maduro. 

Polls show he's favored to win by a first round majority or in a runoff election if required.

The Trump administration won't recognize the result if Maduro is reelected - another example of US contempt for democratic governance it rejects at home and abroad.

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