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Juan Guaido

Bitter Ending For Guaidó

The Venezuelan opposition, more divided than ever and internationally isolated, wants to end the “interim government” of Juan Guaidó and remove him from leadership position. Three of the four main parties of the opposition alliance Unitary Platform expressed their support for ending the “interim presidency” and stop recognizing Guaidó as Venezuela’s “president in-charge.” They have enough votes to get this decision approved, the Financial Times reported on Thursday, October 20, citing a senior figure in the opposition alliance. The decision comes as 10 largest opposition parties in Venezuela have agreed to hold primary elections in June 2023 to choose a single candidate for the presidency. The presidential election is scheduled for 2024.

US Foreign Policy Impasse Over Venezuela

The seamless official policy of the Trump and Biden administrations has been that Juan Guaidó is Venezuela’s “interim president.” The US is thusly caught in the self-inflicted fiction of having to deal with a powerless puppet because it does not accept the democratically elected Nicolás Maduro. Although Trump has at least retreated to Mar-a-Lago, Guaidó keeps on asking to be invited to the party, much to Biden’s embarrassment. A related conundrum of its own making is the US sanctions on Venezuela’s oil industry and at the same time needing the fuel. It wasn’t so long ago that Venezuela supplied the US with a significant amount of its daily petroleum consumption. Now Uncle Sam finds himself confronted with price inflation at the gas pump and the inevitability of negotiating with a government it does not recognize.

OAS General Assembly: Countries Fed Up With Guaidó’s Circus Act

This Wednesday, October 5, various international websites reported that Juan Guaidó’s “envoy” to the general assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS), Gustavo Tarre, decided not to attend after learning that 11 nations intended to expel him from the Lima summit. Among the countries that requested the expulsion of Juan Guaidó’s illegitimate diplomat in the OAS are Mexico, Bolivia and Antigua and Barbuda. The representatives of those countries showed their intention to not recognize Tarre in the US-controlled regional body’s general assembly. In fact, in the last assembly of the organization in November of last year, Mexico, Argentina and Bolivia rejected the presence of Guaidó’s envoy.

US Judge Upholds ConocoPhillips $8.5B Award, Venezuela Rejects Ruling

A Washington D.C. federal judge has granted US oil corporation ConocoPhillips final approval to enforce a multi-billion arbitration award against Venezuela. On August 19, US District Judge Carl Nichols issued a default judgment in favor of ConocoPhillips to collect on a US $8.5 billion arbitration award plus around $22 million for reimbursement of legal costs after the Venezuelan so-called “interim government” failed to appear in court for more than two years. The default claim was entered by the court in October 2021. “Venezuela still has not entered an appearance or otherwise opposed the Motion. For the following reasons, the Court grants the Motion and enters [a default] judgment for Petitioners,” indicated the court’s file.

On Venezuela, Only Hawkish ‘Dissent’ Allowed

Another NATO war means a media establishment in a propaganda frenzy once again. Corporate media outlets have cheered Washington for throwing fuel to the fire in Ukraine, with some demanding that the administration escalate yet more. Be it through their choice of pundits, or their own reporters haranguing White House officials for not sending enough weaponry, one thing is clear enough: Elite media will only criticize official foreign policy for not being hawkish enough. When it comes to Venezuela, corporate journalists have historically had little to criticize, given Washington’s “maximum pressure” regime-change efforts.  However, a recent unexpected trip by a high-level US delegation to Caracas to meet with Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro opened the spectrum of opinion ever so slightly.

Venezuela: A Model Of Resistance To US Intervention

Unlike Ukraine, Venezuela successfully resisted the violent US-led coup attempt in 2014, and in other years, by right wing forces and the hybrid war being waged against it. Venezuela is recovering despite the ongoing economic blockade. Now, because the United States needs oil, the Biden administration has started talking to the Maduro government and there is hope that relations between the two countries may resume. For an update on this situation, as well as the future of Venezuela's US-based oil company CITGO, the status of Venezuela's gold in the Bank of London, the demise of Juan Guaido, and the kidnapping of Venezuelan diplomat, Alex Saab, Clearing the FOG speaks with Leonardo Flores, the Latin American campaign director for CODEPINK.

Venezuelan Coup Attempt Leader Might End Up In Prison Soon

As The Canary has consistently reported, the US-backed coup attempt in Venezuela has been degenerating into an increasingly pathetic and embarrassing spectacle. Now, in one final gasp of desperation, Juan Guaidó has called for a fresh round of protests next month. But it looks like he and his dwindling band of followers’ hopes of toppling the government will soon be dashed. Because there are now growing calls for his prosecution for crimes including treason. Washington and its mouthpieces in the corporate-owned media will surely crow that this somehow constitutes ‘proof’ of the Venezuelan government’s authoritarian nature. But the reality is that the US is, if anything, even less tolerant of the kind of behavior that its proxies in Venezuela have engaged in as part of their attempt to seize power.

Washington, Guaidó And The Billion-Dollar Circus

This outcome was far from certain in recent months. With Guaidó’s self-proclamation and initial enthusiasm far in the rearview mirror, the opposition’s cherished tradition of cannibalistic infighting became ever more present. Corruption scandals and bitter name-calling made the rounds on social media. Leaders like Henrique Capriles were openly calling for Guaidó’s head while mocking the “interim government” by likening it to a video game. A sector of the opposition managed to twist the hardliners’ arm and run in the November 21 mega-elections. The gamble was clear: get a respectable number of elected governors and mayors and Guaidó’s post would be under even more pressure. But it did not work out, which forced the warring parties into a kind of détente.

UK Gold Ruling Based On ‘Illegal Interference’ In Venezuela

Mexico City, Mexico, December 20, 2021 – The United Kingdom’s highest court issued a ruling on Monday favoring opposition figure Juan Guaidó and his efforts to wrest control of US$1.7 billion worth of Venezuelan gold stored at the Bank of England (BoE). The Monday decision is the latest episode in the legal struggle by the democratically-elected Nicolás Maduro government to regain access to the reserves. Following what the court described as the “one voice principle," the court ruled that under the UK’s constitutional arrangements political recognition of foreign states falls to the country’s executive. In 2019, Conservative UK Prime Minister Theresa May recognized Guaidó, then president of the National Assembly, as “interim president” as part of the US-led effort to oust the Maduro government.

Tales Of Resistance: Guaidó’s Pie

A few days ago I was out grocery shopping when I heard a man tell his friend that Venezuela was the only country in the world with two presidents but where everything was still screwed up. This has become a running joke among Venezuelans. However, some three years ago, when Juan Guaidó proclaimed himself “interim president” and was instantly backed by the United States and the European Union, things didn’t seem so funny. The government and its support base feared this was the opening act ahead of a US military invasion. Opposition activists weren’t totally clear as to what was going on, but their leaders were quick to fall in line behind Guaidó, and the initial rallies created a lot of expectation. But that did not last.

US Policy Toward Venezuela Was Never About Promoting Democracy

Last year, then Special Representative Elliott Abrams declared that the Trump Administration was “working hard” to oust Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Now Abrams (currently a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations), together with the Biden Administration, is urging the Venezuelan opposition to participate in the upcoming state and local elections this November. Washington’s recent backpedaling, however, does not mean they’ve given up on intervening in Venezuela’s internal affairs. Not surprisingly, Washington has pressured Venezuela’s rightist opposition—led by self-proclaimed president Juan Guaidó and opposition leader Leopoldo López—to abandon their three-year policy of boycotting elections, which they claim are rigged. Electoral participation is a hard pill for both politicians to swallow because it shatters the illusion, nurtured by many in Washington, that Guaidó is the rightful president and that he is just days or weeks from occupying the presidential palace.

Venezuela’s Resistance Reduces Washington’s Pressure

The Venezuelan Foreign Minister, Jorge Arreaza, has dedicated the last four years of his life to weather the worst diplomatic crisis his country has suffered in decades. During that time he has faced the trade blockade, the confiscation of strategic companies and deposits abroad, and the recognition of the parallel government of Juan Guaidó by Washington and the European Union.

EU Mission Evaluates Venezuela Electoral Team

The European Union (EU) has sent an “exploratory mission” to Venezuela to assess social and political conditions in the country. The 15-day mission is similarly charged with judging electoral guarantees and the “utility, convenience and viability” of adding an EU delegation to the typically ample electoral observer teams for the November 21 “mega-elections,” in which more than 100 political parties are vying to elect over 3000 public regional and local officials. The delegation is considered a further step in smoothing relations between the Caribbean country and the European bloc, with EU Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell highlighting a “possible political opening in Venezuela.”

US ‘Virtual Ambassador’ To Venezuela Hosts Insurrectionist Summit Ahead Of Biden’s Guaidó recognition

US “virtual ambassador” to Venezuela James “Jimmy” Story promised to answer a series of questions sent to him by The Grayzone this February 24. But after a Whatsapp exchange with this reporter during which Story offered to explain why he regularly alternated between Gargamel and the Smurfs as his avatar on the messaging app, the promised exchange never took place. On March 2, Story’s assistant, David Fogelson, informed The Grayzone that the virtual ambassador “won’t be able to do the interview.” He offered no further details on Story’s turnabout. That same day, during a Zoom event with the Venezuelan American Association of the US, Story boasted that his willingness to accept a few critical questions from his online audience “shows a transparency that the regime [in Caracas] does not show.”

Venezuelan Parliamentary Commission Charges Guaidó

Today, February 5, the Comptroller Commission of Venezuela’s National Assembly (AN) presented before the Public Ministry (MP) charges against the 2015 deputy Juan Guaidó for damage to the Republic and usurpation of functions. In statements transmitted by Venezolana de Televisión, the president of the commission, deputy José Brito, stated that the charges presented by the Commission included criminal association, organized crime, usurpation of functions, assassination, attempted coup, homicide, and others. “The sum of penalties would add up to more than 200 years in prison,” said Brito. In this regard, he mentioned the official assignment of two national prosecutors from the MP to the special commission to investigate the actions of the outgoing National Assembly.

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Online donations are back! 

Keep independent media alive. 

Due to the attacks on our fiscal sponsor, we were unable to raise funds online for nearly two years.  As the bills pile up, your help is needed now to cover the monthly costs of operating Popular Resistance.

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