Is the U.S. Headed for a Showdown with Venezuela?
By Jerry Brewer
Is there reason to believe that the United States
is on a hunt for weapons of mass destruction in South America? Probably not.
Are terrorist movements a real concern down that
way? There is every reason to believe the answer is yes. After all, terrorism
is the calculated use and/or threat of violence, or coercion against governments or a society, to attain desired goals or
objectives.
Last June the Paraguayan legislature gave the green
light for U.S. military forces to conduct “13 joint exercises,” to run through the end of 2006.
The current President of Paraguay, Nicanor Duarte
Frutos, is generally viewed as a free-market advocate who is also described as becoming “aggressively pro-Washington.” Paraguay, in the tri-border area with Argentina and Brazil, is a major concern for
the United States and its CIA Counterterrorism Center, with respect to the large influx of Middle Eastern immigrants who have
come to the region.
Reports link Hezbollah, Hamas, and elements of al-Qaeda
to the area. Which coupled with smuggling, and the financing of terrorism and
drug trafficking within this substantial Arab population, is a real concern for the welfare of Latin America.
This news certainly brings concern for Venezuela’s
President Hugo Chavez.
In Argentina, during the Summit of the Americas,
Chavez told thousands of sympathetic demonstrators that U.S. plans to invade Venezuela are in full preparation. Further, he stated that a U.S. attack would trigger a “100 year war.” Based on these allegations, he called for volunteers to join the army reserve while ordering 100,000 Russian-made
Kalashnikov weapons.
Chavez went so far as to blame a Spanish military
exercise as evidence of a threat. In 2001 Spain proposed a military exercise
entitled “Operation Balboa,” that was exhibited by the Chavez government in the form of documents (purportedly
in hand) that simulated an assault on a “brown” country modeled after Venezuela.
Venezuelan officials have accused the United States of providing confidential information for this simulation conducted
by officials of the Spanish military and other NATO countries.
Why the paranoia of the Venezuelan president about
supposed U.S. intentions?
Chavez did not seem to have much concern about United
States retaliation after standing with Argentine protesters at the Summit of the Americas.
There he stood and chanted anti-U.S. messages as U.S. flags burned before the cameras.
Too, Chavez seemed to enjoy the photo opportunity
last June in western Cuba as he rode in an open jeep with Fidel Castro, both wearing military fatigues and saluting a citizenry
waving Cuban and Venezuelan flags.
Cuba has to be impressed with Chavez’s gift
of 90,000 barrels of discounted oil, and the modernizing of Cuba’s oil storage and refinery facilities.
However Chavez does little to convincingly persuade
free nations that his intentions are honorable. Close ties to Communist Cuba
and Fidel Castro, and that history of oppression and leftist involvement in Latin America, are not motivators to show good
intentions to a hemisphere in great need of stability and assistance.
So how does Chavez get a sympathetic ear from struggling
nations in Latin America? The answer is oil.
Sky-high oil prices have handed the Venezuelan government an enormous windfall, and Chavez has used that income to
beef up military arms and buy influence abroad, especially in Latin America.
The Bolivarian Revolution has sharply divided Venezuelans,
with many calling the comments and explanations by Chavez “a ploy to distract attention from Venezuela’s real
problems” such as inflation, corruption, the homeless, and gun violence. Others
fear that President George W. Bush could send troops to seize their oil reserves.
Chavez has also stated that the “U.S. is the
real threat to democracy.” World news reports list claims that Chavez and
his officials have blamed Washington for everything from assassination plots to floods brought on by global warming.
Other media reports however show that the people
of Venezuela are now denied basic human and civil rights that protect freedom of expression.
As well, more recent restrictions against the press in Venezuela are believed to be shielding government officials
from public scrutiny.
Quite possibly added political maneuvers to divert
attention from true domestic problems, as the Venezuelan people are in true need of the nation’s oil revenue to survive
and live in peace.
As critical elections approach throughout South and
Central America, and Mexico, accusations of Chavez orchestrating campaigns to influence or interfere in electoral politics
and processes should not be taken lightly. The message of Chavez is clear, and
it is anti-U.S. and anti-all who support U.S. policy and interests.
____________________
Jerry Brewer, the Vice President of Criminal Justice International Associates, a global risk mitigation firm headquartered
in Montgomery, Alabama, is also a columnist with MexiData.info. He can be reached via e-mail
at Cjiaincusa@aol.com
