The same day that Maria Corina Machado toured the White House, the director of the CIA, John Ratcliffdid the same inside the Miraflores Palace.
The former Republican congressman from Texas had met on Thursday at the presidential complex with Delcy Rodriguezas he advanced The New York Times. A surprising move because, among other reasons, Ratcliff participated in the preparations for Operation Absolute Resolve that led to the capture of Nicolas Maduro just thirteen days ago.
Thursday’s meeting in Caracas lasted two hours, more than enough time to talk about political collaboration and economic cooperation. The director of the CIA expressed his concern about the activities of the Aragua Train, a criminal organization that spreads its tentacles in the region.
The interest of Ratcliff and the Trump Administration is that Venezuela stops being “a safe haven for the adversaries of the United States, especially for drug traffickers,” according to government sources cited by the New York newspaper.
A few hours after the meeting, Delcy presented a proposal for the partial reform of the Hydrocarbons Law from the tribune of the National Assembly. Reform inspired by “the Chevron model” and aimed at facilitating investments by energy giants in the Venezuelan market.
Weeks before Maduro’s capture, the CIA carried out a classified evaluation that concluded that the regime’s senior staff, led by Delcy Rodríguez, were the most qualified actors to lead a transitional government that would maintain stability. They are the ones who have control of the State apparatus, and the weapons.
Trump himself reaffirmed the Administration’s point of view this Friday. Questioned about his support for Delcy and not Machado, whom he described as “a great woman,” the White House tenant recalled the fall of Saddam Hussein: “If you ever remember a place called Iraq where everyone was fired… The police, the generals, they were all fired and they ended up being ISIS.”
The Cuban president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, during the march this Friday in Havana-
Reuters
Also this Friday, the Minister of Defense, Vladimir Padrino Lópezconfirmed that at least 47 Venezuelan soldiers died in the United States attack that resulted in Maduro’s capture. The Ministry of the Interior, Diosdado Cabello, put the number of fatalities as a result of the attack at 100. Chavismo did not want to offer more details.
Among those killed in Operation Absolute Resolve are 32 Cuban military and intelligence officers. They were part of Maduro’s security ring. They were the praetorian guard of the Chavista leader, as they were before Hugo Chávez.
Also this Friday, thousands of Cubans—military personnel, officials, and members and sympathizers of the Communist Party—took to the streets of Havana to pay tribute to them.
Dressed in the olive green uniform of head of the National Defense Council—something he can only do, according to law, in states of war and emergency, or in the event of general mobilization—the Cuban president Miguel Diaz-Canel He spoke from a lectern in front of the United States Embassy building to say that “there is no surrender or surrender possible, nor any type of understanding based on coercion or intimidation.”
“Cuba does not have to make any political concessions nor will it ever be at the negotiating table for an understanding between Cuba and the United States,” reaffirmed the general secretary of the Communist Party, who flatly rejected negotiating with the Trump Administration “on the basis of coercion.”
A frontal challenge to Trump’s threats, who prohibited Venezuela from exporting more oil to the island, and a poisoned dart to Delcy, in charge of piloting the transition in Venezuela on orders from the United States. “No, imperialists, we are absolutely not afraid of you… and we don’t like being threatened.”