As rival factions vie for control over Venezuela, many of the country’s 31 million people are suffering prolonged power outages, food and water shortages, and limited access to medicine.
During the Cold War, socialism was portrayed as a gateway drug to communist orthodoxy. The crisis in Venezuela has resurrected tired old tropes about “pinks” and “useful idiots.”
Robert Muggah, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio)
Citing security concerns, the US is evacuating its embassy in Caracas, where President Maduro blames the US for a calamitous power outage. Venezuela’s relations with Brazil are eroding quickly, too.
Robert Muggah, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio) and Adriana Abdenur, Escola de Guerra Naval (ESG)
Brazil’s president has threatened military intervention in neighboring Venezuela, called its leader a ‘dictator’ and sent troops to the border. But Brazil’s military is quietly working to avoid war.
Canada’s recent decision to temporarily stop deporting Haitians and Venezuelans reaffirms the nation’s commitment to vulnerable people. However, Quebec’s recent policies don’t match with Canada’s.
The Trump administration says President Maduro’s ‘days are numbered’ after Venezuelan security forces killed four protesters. But any US-led operation to oust him is likely to be extremely unpopular.
With ExxonMobil set to begin oil production in Guyana next year, this tiny South American country will soon become unthinkably rich. But neighboring Venezuela shows how an oil boom can go bust.
Venezuela’s hyperinflation has been caused by an inept public policy of printing more money and private individuals making the most of differences between official and unofficial exchange rates.
Visiting Scholar, Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Harvard University; Director of Studies at the Changing Character of War Centre, and Senior Research Fellow, Dept. of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford