Venezuela: Trump threatens to wage a war against Venezuela amid the Covid-19 pandemic
At a time when the United States is going through a very difficult week of pandemic, Donald Trump issues a war ultimatum to Venezuela to expel Nicolás Maduro from the presidency of the Bolivarian Republic. At a press conference on April 1, the US president proved unable to respond to the social, economic and health concerns of Americans and preferred to launch a new offensive against Venezuela. Together with the Secretary of Defense and the Chief of Defense Staff, he announced “a great plan to combat organized crime and drug trafficking in Latin America”, although targeting only one country: Venezuela, and one person: Nicolás Maduro. The announcement comes a few days after Mike Pompeo’s announcement of a “democratic transition framework” in Venezuela, which actually aims to dismantle Venezuelan institutions. This document proposes to install a transitional “State Council” without Nicolás Maduro or Juan Guaidó, without a member of parliament or the judiciary. This body would be responsible for organizing presidential and legislative elections within 6 to 12 months. It is a matter of forcing Maduro’s immediate departure, leaving the National Assembly in the hands of Guaidó, who, however, is in great difficulty in his country. This “proposal” is not an opening to negotiations; it is actually a new war ultimatum because it is accompanied by highly disturbing movements of US troops and military equipment. While the Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres, and the Executive Secretary of ECLAC (Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean), call for the general lifting of economic and financial sanctions against all countries, including Venezuela, and call for an end to conflicts and wars across the planet to mobilize energy and resources against the Covid-19 pandemic, the United States threatens military intervention and the European Union takes the side of hostility, aligning itself with decisions from Donald Trump. Indeed, on April 3, 2020, the Vice-president of the European Commission for Foreign Policy affirmed his agreement with the United States’ proposal for a “democratic transition framework”. France also communicated, through the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, that the country “supports a political and peaceful solution to the crisis in Venezuela, whose result requires the holding of free, transparent and credible legislative and presidential elections”. France and the European Union are aligning once again with the US Administration in its obsession about controlling Venezuela. Now it is certainly not the time for new acts of interference, but for international solidarity and cooperation. This international solidarity requires the immediate lifting of economic and financial sanctions against Venezuela, but also against Cuba and all the countries affected by embargoes and whose populations do not have access to international aid in this context of a viral pandemic. The PCF expresses once again its total solidarity with the Venezuelan people and the Venezuelan democratic and peace forces. Press release in French / source: https://www.pcf.fr/actualite_venezuela_ trump_menace_de_mener_une_ guerre_contre_le_venezuela_en_ pleine_pand_mie_covid19French Communist Party condemns Donald Trump’s threat to Venezuela
The French Communist Party (PCF) issued a statement on Wednesday in support of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, in which it “strongly condemns the United States military maneuvers against Venezuela, as well as the support of France and the European Union for the ‘transition framework’ that the United States seeks to impose”.
Through the statement, the PCF states that Donald Trump launched a new offensive against Venezuela for being “unable to respond to the social, economic and health concerns of Americans”.
On the other hand, the French left-wing party condemns the position of the European Union and France, which “are once again aligning themselves to the US Administration in its obsession about controlling Venezuela”.
The PCF also reiterates that these actions are even more vile and despicable in times of the Covid-19 global pandemic; a moment in history that should only lead to the strengthening of “solidarity and international cooperation”.
The French Communist Party, led by its national secretary Fabien Roussel, concludes by expressing: “once again its total solidarity with the Venezuelan people and the Venezuelan democratic and peace forces”.
Here is the full text of the statement: