Failed US Regime Change Plots Against Venezuela
by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org – Home – Stephen Lendman)
Multiple US attempts to topple Venezuela’s democratic government since April 2002 failed — a real-life David v. Goliath struggle, the Bolivarian Republic foiling mighty USA’s best shots time and again, short of unlikely, though possible, military intervention. More on this below.
If the Trump regime attacks Venezuela militarily, former UK MP George Galloway believes Vietnam on steroids would follow — endless guerrilla war, millions of Venezuelans involved in the struggle to preserve and protect their nation from the US imperial scourge.
In 2006, the Communal Council Law began the process of establishing communal councils throughout Venezuela nationwide – later replaced by the 2009 Communal Council Law.
Millions of Venezuelans are mobilized in citizen assemblies to defend the revolution from internal and external efforts to undermine it, what Chavismo is all about, supporting the country’s social democracy, hostile to US imperial aims to destroy it.
Maduro explained that over “five million Venezuelans (are) mobilized all over the country (to defend the republic) in support of the freedom…”
The fate of all empires awaits the US. It’s just a matter of time despite spending countless trillions of dollars to remain the dominant global superpower — pouring most of it down a black hole of waste, fraud and abuse, symptomatic of slow-motion decay.
It’s the same dynamic dooming all other empires in history. Nations decline because of their hubris, arrogance, and overreach.
For the US, it’s also about its ruinous military spending at the expense of vital homeland needs, waging endless wars against invented enemies, and unwillingness to change — both extremist right wings of its one-party rule supporting the same destructive agenda.
The following attempts aimed to replace Venezuela’s social democracy with fascist tyranny, mighty USA failing to gain another imperial trophy after nearly two decades of trying:
1. The aborted two-day April 2002 attempt to oust Hugo Chavez. Failure to get Venezuelan military support and popular resistance foiled it.
2. The 2002 – 03 general strike and oil management lockout, causing severe economic disruption and billions of dollars in losses.
3. The August 2004 national recall referendum, Hugo Chavez winning overwhelmingly with a 59% majority, thwarting the US-orchestrated attempt to remove him.
4. US sanctions war on Venezuela, begun by Bush/Cheney in 2006 for so-called non-cooperation in combatting international terrorism the US supports.
War on the Bolivarian Republic by other means continued under Obama, greatly escalated by Trump regime hardliners — targeting senior and other Venezuelan officials, the country’s enterprises, attempting to block its access to financial markets, along with aiming to reduce its oil sales to zero.
Annually since 2006, the State Department accused Venezuela of not “cooperating fully with United States anti-terrorism efforts” – pursuant to Section 40A of the Arms Export Control Act (22 USC 2781).
5. In 2005, the Bush/Cheney regime falsely accused the Bolivarian Republic of non-cooperation against narco-trafficking the US supports worldwide.
Annually since then, Washington falsely claimed Venezuela hasn’t fulfilled its obligations under international narcotics agreements.
6. In 2008, the Bush/Cheney regime imposed asset freezes and prohibitions on financial transactions, targeting designated Venezuelan nationals and enterprises.
7. The Obama regime’s responsibility for killing Chavez, by poisoning or infection with deadly cancer causing substances, a coup by other means, eliminating him, Chavismo remaining resilient.
8. Obama’s March 2015 executive order, falsely declaring Venezuela an “unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States,” declaring a fake ‘national emergency’ in order to confront” a nonexistent threat.
9. Intermittent violent street protests earlier and now, responsible for scores of deaths and hundreds of injuries — US-orchestrated color revolution attempts for regime change.
10. The August 2017 CIA-orchestrated terrorist attack on Fort Paramacay in Carabobo state, another foiled coup attempt.
11. The August 2018 attack on Maduro by drones armed with C-4 explosives, attempting to kill him.
12. Since taking office, Trump regime hardliners waged war on Venezuela by other means, greatly escalating things since January 2019 — including propaganda, economic, financial, and electricity war, along with other attacks on the country’s infrastructure, aiming to inflict enormous harm on its ordinary people, falsely believing they’ll blame Maduro for US criminal actions.
Chavez knew the US marked him for elimination. So does Maduro. He and other senior Venezuelan officials vulnerable to removal by coup d’etat or assassination.
The latest Trump regime coup attempt on Tuesday failed, the feeble effort foiled in hours after initiation, likely intended to turn out this way.
It’s just a matter of time before another attempt is made to oust Maduro and eliminate Venezuelan social democracy — likely a more serious effort next time, maybe launching a proxy war, using regional elements and perhaps ISIS, the jihadist group created and supported by the US.
Will next time be different? Will it succeed despite everything thrown at the country so far failing? US coup plots against Cuba for nearly 60 years, Iran for 40 years, and Venezuela for 20 years failed.
Failure is likely to continue against these countries short of US military intervention.
What’s likely coming in Venezuela? Perhaps before or along with a proxy war, the next shoe to drop may be an embargo, an act of war if imposed.
How Russia, China, and other Venezuelan allies respond to US regime change tactics are crucially important — if refusing to go along with its war by other means, Bolivarianism can survive over US aims to destroy it.
If US forces attack Venezuela militarily, unlikely but possible, all bets are off.
Regional countries oppose it, especially neighboring Brazil and Colombia, because of the hugely destabilizing spillover effects.
Galloway is likely right. US war on Venezuela would be hugely disruptive regionally. If US forces invade the country, lots of body bags will return to its shores for as long as conflict on the ground continues.
Given hardline extremists in charge of Trump’s geopolitical agenda, anything is possible — most likely proxy war, not Pentagon troops, if things go this far.
Will WW III begin in Venezuela? If not there, perhaps in Iran, similar Trump regime tactics used to topple its government.
If its oil sales are blocked, the Islamic Republic vowed to shut down the Strait of Hormuz.
Over 18 million barrels of oil pass through it daily, around 20% of world production. If the strait is blocked, the US no doubt would respond militarily.
War with Iran would hugely disrupt the entire region, perhaps enough to cause WW III by accident or design.
Note: Why is the US hellbent to control Venezuela and Iran? Besides wanting their sovereign independence eliminated, it’s all about their huge oil reserves.
Henry Kissinger explained it, saying: “Control oil and you control nations. Control food and you control the people.” Control money and you control everything.
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