Statement from the US against threats of military intervention in Venezuela

US Section of the IMT

If we are serious about ensuring that the US keep its hands off Venezuela, we must fight for and win the struggle for socialism right here in the belly of the beast. No revolution in Latin America or around the world will be safe until capitalism and imperialism are buried once and forever.

Donald Trump has promised “fire and fury like the world has never seen” and will not rule out a first strike against nuclear-armed North Korea. In the same breath, he made the following crudely open threat against Venezuela: “We have many options for Venezuela. And by the way, I am not going to rule out a military option. We have many options for Venezuela. This is our neighbor. You know, we are all over the world and we have troops all over the world in places that are very, very far away. Venezuela is not very far away and the people are suffering, and they are dying. We have many options for Venezuela, including a possible military option if necessary.”

Donald Trump heads the most powerful military machine the world has ever seen, an apparatus designed to kill and maim on an industrial scale—one that has killed no fewer than 20 million since the end of World War II. He rules the country with the largest prison population in the world, a nation in which capital punishment and rampant police brutality terrorize millions. In the richest country on the planet, millions do not have access to basic healthcare, which leads to thousands of preventable deaths every year. Donald Trump cares not a bit about “lives being lost” in Venezuela—which by the way, are being lost in violence directly orchestrated and approved by US officials operating on behalf of the counterrevolution in Venezuela.

For nearly two decades, Venezuela has been an example of how things could be done differently. Time and again, the revolutionary masses have seized their destinies into their own hands, defied imperialism, the oligarchy, and fought to reorganize society along more democratic and participatory lines. While in Venezuela the Revolution use oil revenues to eliminate illiteracy and provide health care for all, in the US, workers were made to pay trillions in taxes to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and to bail out the banks and insurance companies. It is this example above all that must be crushed. But for far too long, the leadership of the revolution has vacillated, compromised, conciliated, and taken half measures. Despite their astonishing reserves of revolutionary enthusiasm, this has led to a certain and inevitable tiredness among important layers of the masses.

This is the opportunity the reaction has been tirelessly working towards for years. For US imperialism and the oligarchy, enough is enough! Enough of ordinary people believing they have a sovereign right to collectively decide their fates! Enough instability and threats to private property and profits! Now is the time to wear out and strangle the revolution—and once back in power, to drown it in rivers of blood. This is the real face of imperialism’s “humanitarianism”!

Many liberals vociferously opposed US intervention in Venezuela when GW Bush was in office—only to fall mysteriously silent once Barack Obama was elected. But let us be clear: both the Democrats and Republicans are parties of imperialism and the counterrevolutionary intervention against the Venezuelan Revolution was by no means diminished under Obama, even if the aggressive public rhetoric was toned down. Along with covert operations aimed at sabotage and destabilization the Obama administration sent millions of dollars to “support political competition-building efforts” in Venezuela, no less than $5 million in 2014 alone. For all their crocodile tears over Russian meddling in the US elections, the liberals have not a word to say about the direct interference of the CIA and US Embassy in Venezuela’s political affairs!

The Venezuelan Revolution has only one reliable source of support: the world working class, and above all the US working class. The actions of the masses over the last 15 years in Venezuela have been a source of inspiration and enthusiasm for millions of Americans, who are by no means a single “reactionary bloc” as some on the Left have scandalously asserted. Let us not forget that in the country of the Red Scare and McCarthyism, millions now favor socialism over capitalism and came out in droves last year to support a candidate calling for “political revolution against the billionaire class.” The completion of the socialist revolution in Venezuela—through the expropriation of industry, the banks, and landed estates, to be run under democratic workers’ and peasants’ control—would have an electrifying effect across the Americas, including in the US. It is by no means too late for the Venezuelan workers, peasants, and poor to lead the world to a socialist future!

No revolution in Latin America or around the world will be safe until capitalism and imperialism are buried once and forever. While the socialist revolution will of necessity be worldwide process, the US working class has a unique and indispensable role to play. Just as war is an extension of politics by other means, foreign policy is an extension of domestic policy—a capitalist government in power means pro-capitalist policies at home and abroad! We must unite with our class brothers and sisters in struggle against our common enemy: Trump and the capitalists of the entire planet. Only when US workers have direct control over the politics and economy of the country will we be able to relate to the rest of the world on the basis of solidarity, fraternity, and equality, not exploitation, domination, and intimidation. As part of a voluntary Socialist Federation of the Americas, the peoples of the Americas will work together to eliminate poverty, unemployment, war, illiteracy, hunger, and disease.

If we are serious about ensuring that the US keep its hands off Venezuela, we must fight for and win the struggle for socialism right here in the belly of the beast.

Hands Off Venezuela!
Solidarity with the Venezuelan Revolution!
For a Socialist Federation of the Americas and the World!
Long live the world socialist revolution!

Signed,

US Hands Off Venezuela
US Section of the International Marxist Tendency
Youth for International Socialism

August 12, 2017

Mexico, Colombia, Peru and Brazil condemn military intervention threat to Venezuela

Ricardo Luna, foreign minister of Peru,  a critic of Maduro, said: „All foreign or domestic threats to resort to force undermine the goal of reinstating democratic governance in Venezuela, as well as the principles enshrined in the UN charter.“

Brazil’s foreign ministry said: „The repudiation of violence and whatever option involving the use of force is resolute and constitutes a fundamental basis of democratic cohabitation, both in domestic contexts as well as in international relations.“

Mexico foreign minister Luis Videgaray wrote on Twitter. „The crisis in Venezuela can’t be resolved through military actions, internally or externally.“

Former US-President Jimmy Carter released a statement on North Korea

„The harsh rhetoric from Washington and Pyongyang during recent months has exacerbated an already confrontational relationship between our countries, and has probably eliminated any chance of good faith peace talks between the United States and North Korea. In addition to restraining the warlike rhetoric, our leaders need to encourage talks between North Korea and other countries, especially China and Russia. The recent UN Security Council unanimous vote for new sanctions suggests that these countries could help.  In all cases, a nuclear exchange must be avoided. All parties must assure North Koreans they we will forego any military action against them if North Korea remains peaceful.“

„I have visited North Korea three times, and have spent more than 20 hours in discussions with their political leaders regarding important issues that affect U.S.-DPRK relations.

In June 1994, I met with Kim Il Sung in a time of crisis, when he agreed to put all their nuclear programs under strict supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency and to seek mutual agreement with the United States on a permanent peace treaty, to have summit talks with the president of South Korea, to expedite the recovery of the remains of American service personnel buried in his country, and to take other steps to ease tension on the peninsula. Kim Il Sung died shortly after my visit, and his successor, Kim Jong Il, notified me and leaders in Washington that he would honor the promises made by his father. These obligations were later confirmed officially in negotiations in Geneva by Robert Gallucci and other representatives of the Clinton administration.

„I returned to Pyongyang in August 2010, at the invitation of North Korean leaders, to bring home Aijalon Gomes, an American who had been detained there. My last visit to North Korea was in May 2011 when I led a delegation of Elders (former presidents of Ireland and Finland and former prime minister of Norway) to assure the delivery of donated food directly to needy people.

During all these visits, the North Koreans emphasized that they wanted peaceful relations with the United States and their neighbors, but were convinced that we planned a preemptive military strike against their country. They wanted a peace treaty (especially with America) to replace the ceasefire agreement that had existed since the end of the Korean War in 1953, and to end the economic sanctions that had been very damaging to them during that long interim period. They have made it clear to me and others that their first priority is to assure that their military capability is capable of destroying a large part of Seoul and of responding strongly in other ways to any American attack. The influence of China in Pyongyang seems to be greatly reduced since Kim Jong Un became the North Korean leader in December 2011.

„A commitment to peace by the United States and North Korea is crucial. When this confrontational crisis is ended, the United States should be prepared to consummate a permanent treaty to replace the ceasefire of 1953. The United States should make this clear, to North Koreans and to our allies.“

Russia supports Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro

„We do not think that actions of this sort contribute anything constructive,“ the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is denouncing the „unilateral sanction restrictions“ levied by the United States.

„The current determining reality is the formation of a new supreme national body, the National Constituent Assembly, following the July 30 elections, and its practical launch, which lay the foundations for a new institutional framework of the country’s internal political life, and which we believe are creating opportunities for Venezuela to move towards stabilization,“ the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

Russia’s endorsement coincided with Cuban dictator Raul Castro applauding Maduro in an open letter that also denounced U.S. sanctions.

Russia says the referendum is „a starting point“ for a resolution of the political crisis.

„We are confident that the path towards an internal political settlement in Venezuela runs through building up constructive elements in approaches that are based, not on lamentations for something that failed to materialize, but on regard for the new realities emerging in Venezuela as a starting point for further progress, making it possible to launch a practical search for areas of national accord conducive to the implementation of countrywide tasks,“ the Foreign Ministry statement said. „There is no alternative to direct and responsible talks between the government and the opposition. Peace in Venezuela is still dependent on all sides being ready to return to dialogue within the framework of the Constitution, without outside interference, and with conciliatory political efforts in the interests of shaping a unifying agenda.“

The U.S., meanwhile, issued the following statement:
The United States considers the Venezuelan National Constituent Assembly the illegitimate product of a flawed process designed by the Maduro dictatorship to further its assault on democracy,“ State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said following the vote. „The process was rigged from the start, from the irregular manner in which the election was decreed to the government’s refusal to permit voters to object to plans to rewrite the constitution.“

[Sputnik Deutschland] Mauerbau 1961: Gefährliche Konfrontation statt Friedensvertrag

Chruschtschow hat 1958 die Berlin-Krise ausgelöst, behauptet ein Historiker. Im zweiten Teil der dreiteiligen Sputnik-Reihe zum Mauerbau 1961 geht es um die westliche Konfrontation als Antwort auf Moskaus Forderung, unklare Regelungen von 1944 zu korrigieren (siehe Teil 1). Dabei hat auch der Friedenswunsch eines US-Präsidenten nichts gezählt.

https://de.sputniknews.com/politik/20170812316994907-mauerbau-gefaerliche-konfrontation-statt-friedensvertrag/

Mauerbau 1961: Wie die Alliierten die Fundamente bereits 1943 legten (Sputnik Deutschland)

 

Am 13. August 1961 hat die DDR die Grenze zur BRD und zu Westberlin gesichert, auch durch den Bau der Mauer. Das wird dem untergegangenen Land bis heute vorgeworfen. Die Ursachen für das Ereignis werden oft übersehen oder verschwiegen. Sputnik hat deshalb mit einem Zeitzeugen gesprochen und Literatur gesichtet. Hier Teil 1 einer dreiteiligen Serie.

https://de.sputniknews.com/politik/20170812316994658-mauerbau-wie-die-allierten-die-fundamente-bereits-1943-legten/

Kubas Präsident Castro stärkt Venezuelas Staatschef Maduro den Rücken

„Das venezolanische Volk ist nicht allein. Die Kubaner stehen in der ersten Reihe der Solidarität“, schrieb Kubas Präsident Raúl Castro in einem am Donnerstag veröffentlichten Brief an Maduro.

„Mit revolutionärer Freude erkenne ich das Ergebnis der Wahl und die Einberufung der Verfassungsgebenden Versammlung an“, schrieb Castro. „Sicherlich werden nun Tage des heftigen Kampfs, der internationalen Angriffe, der Blockaden und Einschränkungen folgen. Aber es werden auch Tage des Schaffens und der Arbeit für die Revolutionäre und das venezolanische Volk sein.“

Diego Maradona will für Venezuela und Präsident Maduro „als Soldat für ein freies Venezuela kämpfen.“

Diego Maradona ergreift Partei für den venzolanischen Präsidenten Nicolás Maduro: Der Ex-Fußballstar würde „als Soldat für ein freies Venezuela kämpfen.“

Inmitten des erbitterten Machtkampfs in Venezuela hat der frühere Fußballstar Diego Maradona Präsident Nicolás Maduro seine Unterstützung zugesichert. „Wenn Maduro es befiehlt, werde ich mich als Soldat für ein freies Venezuela kleiden, um gegen den Imperialismus zu kämpfen“, schrieb der Argentinier am Montagabend (Ortszeit) auf Facebook. „Es lebe Maduro! Es lebe die Revolution!“.

Maradona gilt als Anhänger der linken Regierungen in Lateinamerika. Er war mit dem kubanischen Revolutionsführer Fidel Castro befreundet, verehrte den früheren venezolanischen Präsidenten Hugo Chávez und unterstützt auch dessen Nachfolger Maduro.