Stabroek News – October 13, 2019
A number of news organisations, including the BBC, have produced pieces on Russia’s growing global reach, and President Vladimir Putin’s apparent mission to re-establish his country’s influence in world affairs and engineer a return to spheres of influence. He has been aided by the carelessness, lack of judgement and sometimes arrogance of the West, which made it possible for him to make Moscow a player in the Middle East, take the Crimea and bring eastern Ukraine under its ambit.
But all of this, while of interest to Guyanese on account of the small world we live in, is not of immediate moment. In contrast, Russia’s actions across our border are. Once again, with Washington taking the lead, the West made a strategic miscalculation in de-recognising Nicolás Maduro as Head of State and Government in Venezuela, and according interim presidential status to Juan Guaidó. Continue reading
The Economist – 
Venezuela: Russia Is Gearing Up for a Conflict with the United States in the Caribbean – opinion
With Moscow propping up Maduro, evading oil sanctions, and moving its troops around the coast, Washington needs to rethink its own strategies.
New conflicts in the rest of the world may be looming large, but one in the United States’ own backyard is about to get more dangerous. Despite U.S.-led sanctions on Venezuela’s state-owned oil company, Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA), oil from the country is still flowing onto world markets. A central facilitator of the exports is Rosneft, Russia’s state-owned oil company, which has been accepting Venezuelan crude as a form of loan repayment. In this way, Russian President Vladimir Putin is playing a leading role in keeping Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro afloat. As long as he does, current U.S. sanctions policy will do little to force a change in Venezuela, which is why Washington needs to rethink its strategy for dislodging the Venezuelan leader — and soon. Continue reading →
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