Re: [marxmail] Signs point to PSUV collaboration in Maduro kidnapping

2026-01-08 Thread Chris Slee via groups.io
Faced with a naval blockade and the threat of further military aggression, 
perhaps on a much larger scale, the Venezuelan government may make further 
concessions to US imperialism.  Instead of blaming Maduro and Flores for making 
concessions, we should be discussing how to build a solidarity movement strong 
enough to (in combination with other movements such as Palestine solidarity, 
anti-ICE, etc) challenge the Trump regime and US imperialism in general.

Chris Slee

From: [email protected]  on behalf of Fred Fuentes via 
groups.io 
Sent: Thursday, 8 January 2026 10:00 PM
To: [email protected] 
Subject: Re: [marxmail] Signs point to PSUV collaboration in Maduro kidnapping

Two bits of speculation surrounding the US assault on Venezuela and kidnapping 
of Nicolas Maduro and Cilia Flores that, IMO, are wrong:

1) US President Donald Trump did not install Maria Corina Machado (MCM) as 
president due to his anger at her being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize — in 
reality, evidence indicates that Trump had lost interest in MCM and Edmundo 
González Urrutia (EGU, the opposition candidate that the outgoing Biden 
government declared president-elect) long before this. From failing to invite 
them to his inauguration or having any subsequent meeting, through to choosing 
to send his special envoy, Richard Grenell, to meet with Maduro, it was clear 
Trump had sidelined MCM/EGU in his designs for Venezuela.

There were several reasons for this: the lack of any organic links between 
Trump and the Venezuelan opposition (unlike those that existed with previous 
administrations or Marco Rubio); his belief they had misled him about their 
ability to overthrow Maduro during his first term; and, most importantly, his 
conclusion that only some kind of Madurista government could oversee the kind 
of project he wants while maintaining certain stability.

That is why Trump never spoke about democracy as a pretext for the military 
build-up; it was always about US interests, whether fighting “narcotrafficking” 
or securing oil. This is also why, as I argued at the time, MCM's Nobel Peace 
Prize was not part of Trump’s strategy but rather an intervention by those who 
saw that he was seeking a transition that did not necessarily involve her.

2) Venezuelan vice-president (now acting president) sold out Maduro to Trump — 
beyond the lack of evidence to support this speculation, it misses the fact 
that there is much more continuity than discontinuity between the government 
headed by Maduro and the government headed by Delcy Rodríguez.

For some time now, Maduro had been seeking a rapprochement with US imperialism. 
With Trump in power Madurismo thought this was on the cards, particularly after 
the meeting with Grenell. Amid the military build-up, the Venezuelan government 
felt that by offering up Venezuela’s resources it could avoid confront.

However, at some point, for some reason, Trump decided Maduro himself had to 
go. Why this happened would be entering into speculation: did Rubio convince 
him? Did he feel he needed a trophy? Was he not happy with how negotiations 
were going? I do not know.

But I do know that unity among the various factions within Madurismo has been 
key to it hold on power; any such betrayal would be a huge risk to its future. 
The risk of giving up Maduro in order to do what they already had offered up 
was that it would destroy this unity. That makes no sense for the point of view 
of preservation.

The end result of these two things is that today Trump (still) has a government 
in Caracas willing to cut a deal, that can (still) provide the most stable 
transition possible, but understands it is in no position to negotiation. 
Moreover, its only ability to come out of this in some fighting shape is 
united. Given this, Trump is likely to want to completely humiliate the 
Rodríguez government at it forces it to submit to its every will.

One argument I have made for a long time is that the US never preferred a 
“democratic transition” in Venezuela. This was in large part driven by the 
difficulties the opposition had in winning elections. In 2024, they overcame 
this difficultly only to not be able to overcome a second difficulty: turning 
that electoral majority into a social force capable of making that victory 
count and install EGU in power (another reason Trump distrusted MCM/EGU’s 
ability to rule).

An unelected, unaccountable, transitional authority would better serve US 
interests, be able to rule without worrying about a democratic mandate, and 
implement all the policies that would be deeply unpopular at the ballot box. 
Such an authority would also be in a better position to crush resistance.

Another argument I have made is that while US pressure never succeeded in 
forcing regime change in the traditional sense — removing Maduro and replacing 
him with the opposition — it had played its role in shifting the government's 
project away f

Re: [marxmail] Signs point to PSUV collaboration in Maduro kidnapping

2026-01-08 Thread Fred Fuentes via groups.io
Two bits of speculation surrounding the US assault on Venezuela and kidnapping 
of Nicolas Maduro and Cilia Flores that, IMO, are wrong:

1) US President Donald Trump did not install Maria Corina Machado (MCM) as 
president due to his anger at her being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize — in 
reality, evidence indicates that Trump had lost interest in MCM and Edmundo 
González Urrutia (EGU, the opposition candidate that the outgoing Biden 
government declared president-elect) long before this. From failing to invite 
them to his inauguration or having any subsequent meeting, through to choosing 
to send his special envoy, Richard Grenell, to meet with Maduro, it was clear 
Trump had sidelined MCM/EGU in his designs for Venezuela.

There were several reasons for this: the lack of any organic links between 
Trump and the Venezuelan opposition (unlike those that existed with previous 
administrations or Marco Rubio); his belief they had misled him about their 
ability to overthrow Maduro during his first term; and, most importantly, his 
conclusion that only some kind of Madurista government could oversee the kind 
of project he wants while maintaining certain stability.

That is why Trump never spoke about democracy as a pretext for the military 
build-up; it was always about US interests, whether fighting “narcotrafficking” 
or securing oil. This is also why, as I argued at the time, MCM's Nobel Peace 
Prize was not part of Trump’s strategy but rather an intervention by those who 
saw that he was seeking a transition that did not necessarily involve her.

2) Venezuelan vice-president (now acting president) sold out Maduro to Trump — 
beyond the lack of evidence to support this speculation, it misses the fact 
that there is much more continuity than discontinuity between the government 
headed by Maduro and the government headed by Delcy Rodríguez.

For some time now, Maduro had been seeking a rapprochement with US imperialism. 
With Trump in power Madurismo thought this was on the cards, particularly after 
the meeting with Grenell. Amid the military build-up, the Venezuelan government 
felt that by offering up Venezuela’s resources it could avoid confront.

However, at some point, for some reason, Trump decided Maduro himself had to 
go. Why this happened would be entering into speculation: did Rubio convince 
him? Did he feel he needed a trophy? Was he not happy with how negotiations 
were going? I do not know.

But I do know that unity among the various factions within Madurismo has been 
key to it hold on power; any such betrayal would be a huge risk to its future. 
The risk of giving up Maduro in order to do what they already had offered up 
was that it would destroy this unity. That makes no sense for the point of view 
of preservation.

The end result of these two things is that today Trump (still) has a government 
in Caracas willing to cut a deal, that can (still) provide the most stable 
transition possible, but understands it is in no position to negotiation. 
Moreover, its only ability to come out of this in some fighting shape is 
united. Given this, Trump is likely to want to completely humiliate the 
Rodríguez government at it forces it to submit to its every will.

One argument I have made for a long time is that the US never preferred a 
“democratic transition” in Venezuela. This was in large part driven by the 
difficulties the opposition had in winning elections. In 2024, they overcame 
this difficultly only to not be able to overcome a second difficulty: turning 
that electoral majority into a social force capable of making that victory 
count and install EGU in power (another reason Trump distrusted MCM/EGU’s 
ability to rule).

An unelected, unaccountable, transitional authority would better serve US 
interests, be able to rule without worrying about a democratic mandate, and 
implement all the policies that would be deeply unpopular at the ballot box. 
Such an authority would also be in a better position to crush resistance.

Another argument I have made is that while US pressure never succeeded in 
forcing regime change in the traditional sense — removing Maduro and replacing 
him with the opposition — it had played its role in shifting the government's 
project away for an anti-imperialist and socialist horizon towards an 
authoritarian capitalist project based on accommodation to imperialism.

What I failed to see was how these two things could come together to give us 
what we have today: a pro-US transitional authority controlled by Madurismo.


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Re: [marxmail] Signs point to PSUV collaboration in Maduro kidnapping

2026-01-06 Thread Charles via groups.io
On Tue, Jan 6, 2026 at 08:12 PM, Marv Gandall wrote:

> 
> the central charge in the Moscow trials - that the Bukharin Right and
> Trotsky Left Oppositions were colluding with the fascist powers. What
> corroborating evidence is there the confessions obtained by Vyshinshinsky
> were genuine?
> 
> 

As usual, Gandall speaks without knowledge (if he is not witholding knowledge). 
Trotsky tripped himself up in public statements – it is not all confessions. 
But Gandall would have to read and try to rebut Khristian Rakovsky - Trotsky's 
Japanese Spy ( https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FSF5F9FG/ ).


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Re: [marxmail] Signs point to PSUV collaboration in Maduro kidnapping

2026-01-06 Thread Marv Gandall via groups.io
Hi Hari,

Thanks for your lengthy reply. I’ll address your summary points.

*HK* :  Most simplify the situation: "Stalin all bad - Trotsky all good."
A more correct way of assessing their assessments is that they take a 
reductionist viewpoint and reduce all state events to "the fault of Stalin who 
was in charge of everything that happened in the State”.

*MG* : Reductionism on both sides: “The difficulties faced by USSR in the 30’s 
mainly due to Trotskyite wreckers and splitters..."

*HK* : This is being more and more challenged by bourgeois academics such as 
Arch Getty; Wm Chase; Sheila Fitzpatrick ; and even the somewhat vehemently 
anti-Stalin Stephen Kotkin.

*MG* : However, neither Getty, Chase, Fitzpatrick, or Kotkin lend any 
credibility to the *central charge* in the Moscow trials - *that the Bukharin 
Right and Trotsky Left Oppositions were colluding with the fascist powers.*

What corroborating evidence is there the confessions obtained by Vyshinshinsky 
were genuine? Bukharin’s wife and the surviving friends and relatives of many 
if not most of those liquidated or sent to forced labour camps have testified 
otherwise as have those who had access to the Soviet archives since the 
collapse of the USSR. The weight of the evidence is on their side.

*HK* : To wind up - You have argued before to us all on the list that the 1917 
revolution was born too early. Well if the nurseling state was premature it had 
as good an incubator as could be built for it then. And the catch-up to the 
West was remarkable, as was the eradication of illiteracy etc. True it "only 
lasted until 1953 " - that was a good deal longer than did the Paris Commune.

*MG* : True enough. To be clear, what I argued before was that the world 
revolution began in far less propitious circumstances than was expected - in a 
peasant rather than industrial economy with a large organized and politically 
conscious working class. This left the Russian and the subsequent similar 
revolutions which overthrew capitalism vulnerable to bureaucratic control and 
the suppresion of workers' democracy.  Nevertheless, in conditions of dual 
power and civil war, there was no middle way and had the Bolsheviks and the 
other Communist parties not taken power, they and the mass revolutionary 
uprisings which they led would have been drowned in blood.

In other words, I didn't suggest it was wrong for them to have taken power; 
only that they were forced to take power in adverse circumstances. This 
objective factor - more than the subjective notion of  “misleadership”  - 
explains why they later adapted to or fully restored capitalism.

*HK* : And as the expansion of the imperialist west into the post1953 Warsaw 
Pact dependencies; and the huge expansion of the Eurodollar and petrostates; 
and the technical leaps with computing - and I would argue now, with AI -  made 
it clear there was life in the old bastard Capital yet. Of course at the cost 
of peoples well-being and the environment. .

*MG* : Agreed. .

*HK* : But - it remains to rebuild MLIst parties. Because frankly without them, 
we are f

*MG* : Agreed also that a Leninist party was and would again be necessary to 
lead a revolutionary crisis to a successful conclusion, and I don’t see much 
harm in the small Leninist groups recruiting cadre in preparation for that 
eventuality.  But given the current level of political consciousness of the 
most advanced workers (such as those supporting Mamdani),they have remained on 
the margins during our lifetime,

Their isolation has give rise to debate about the appropriate mode of 
intervention by Marxists acting collectively in today’s mass organizations. 
That debate has replaced the old divisions between Stalinists and Trotskyists 
with adherents of both these older tendencies,as we've seen on this list, 
finding themselves aligned on either side of this more contemporary strategic 
discussion.


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Re: [marxmail] Signs point to PSUV collaboration in Maduro kidnapping

2026-01-06 Thread hari kumar via groups.io
Hi Marv:
Yes - thanks for re-pointing me to the Old Bolshevik aspects.

I had said off-line to you that I was working on a lengthier article about 
Bukharin which I shall finish in due course - hopefully not too long away. So I 
will pass on that matter here, other than as it may crop up with some more 
general points being made in the below. I apologise for the length of this 
note, but I detest short tit-for-tatting with assertions and no references. So 
on this subject a somewhat  longer note is merited I think.

1) On a general level, clearly it takes all sorts to make a revolution and many 
are needed. Not all will stay the course but whether they descend into 
espionage is another matter.
But some did so, I consider.  Maybe not all of them, but each personage 
requires separate figuring-out.

2) As you know - and as you have argued alongside the vast majority on the list 
(? >95%?)t is generally claimed by bourgeois writers today, and many 
Trotskyists follow them - that the testimonies at the trials were either 
fabricated or drug-induced or coerced or beaten.

Much of this is convenient and dubious poppy-cock. As a physician I know of no 
drug that can do this.
While fear of death may make for an attempt at 'plea-bargaining' - that only 
works for the first or perhaps victims #1-3.
Moreover - I accept that many of those placed on the Moscow trials were prior 
trained in the party. Ipso-facto - most were robustly trained - and when 
confronted with evidence already disclosed in prior trails, or testimony did 
not readily lie.

For example, the transcripts of interactions between Bukharin and his 
interrogators makes it very clear that Bukharin was neither frightened on the 
stand, nor arguing illogically, not refraining from detailed fencing against 
the court's arguments.

The only personage that might challenge this overall framework - and I think 
that I have said so before - is Marshall Tukachevsky.
There is evidence he was beaten in interrogations. There are more specific 
things to consider as below which means that I have still reserved my own 
judgement until further documents emerge. But:
There was a *general* plot to defeat the USSR in a war ( 
https://www.marxists.org/archive/bland/1990/x01/german-soviet-non-aggression-pact-1939.pdf
 ) - and I think at the moment the Marshall T case can still be argued in 2 
ways - either as:
(i) A plot to smear Tukachevsky because to ensure that the USSR did away with 
him would reduce the USSR's self-defence - his innovations in the army were 
certainly profound; or
(ii) Tukachevsky was very close to German army and indeed a traitor.
I hope to address this more fully elsewhere not too far off. Bland had favoured 
(ii). Frankly I am in doubt and still reserve my judgment for now.

While we are at it on the war - the 'theory' that Stalin was taken by surprise 
by the German invasion is another legend of poppy-cock standards. ( 
https://www.marxists.org/history/erol/periodicals/britain/compass/04-2000.pdf )

3) It is of course true that the prevailing notions of most leftists remains 
the whole thing was a stage managed farce. Yet at the time, bourgeois foreign 
press attending during the court - found that things laid out by the State were 
credible and felt that there were serious plots.
Dismissing USA Ambassador Joseph Davies testimony on the various trials is/was 
all too easy.
But going for example, to the bourgeois expert wreckers trial ( Shakty Case ) - 
no significant doubts were expressed about the case - even:
"“ Bukharin*, Rykov and Tomsky* … did not question the facts of the Shakhty 
affair”.
Stephen F. Cohen: ‘Bukharin and the Bolshevik Revolution: A Political 
Biography: 1888-19381; London; 1974; p. 281)". . .
.
. . and foreign correspondents had this to say:
"According to Eugene Lyons*, the Russian-born American journalist
who attended the trial, the defendants presented
"a sorry picture. Only by a violent stretch of the imagination could one cast 
these grovelling men in heroic roles, either as martyrs or as great 
conspirators. Guilty or innocent, they were men defeated,
impotent, without a deep faith or hope for the future to sustain them. Not one 
of them had advanced any more exalted motive for spoiling machines or opposing 
the revolution than his own desire for more wealth.
The group as a whole seemed to me a sad exhibition of what the age-old system 
of private greed does to its most devoted servants".
(Eugene Lyons: op. cit.; p. 130, 131).

Both cited at http://mlrg.online/history/the-shakty-case/

4) The procedures/administration for investigation were however taken over by - 
hidden agents - including Yagoda and Yezhov. There is no reason to doubt that 
the secret service was taken over at high levels by conscious revisionists. It 
is forgotten generally that when later Beria was put in charge of the secret 
service thousands were released from the gulag camps. Amy Knight 's biography - 
as far as I know the acknowledged 

Re: [marxmail] Signs point to PSUV collaboration in Maduro kidnapping

2026-01-05 Thread Tom Walker via groups.io
On Mon, Jan 5, 2026 at 09:24 AM, Marv Gandall wrote:

> 
> *But the issue has always been whether the Old Bolsheviks were part of
> this conspiracy* - dating as far back as 1918 when it was alleged that
> Bukharin and Trotsky were plotting to assassinate Lenin!

O.K. fine. Let's *assume* that the O.B. were part of the conspiracy from the 
get go. That suggests to me one of two things. Either the revolutionary career 
inevitably attracts a high proportion of unstable and deceitful personality 
types *OR* the political career, in general attracts those personality types 
and revolutionaries are no better than the rest. What is the take away for 
stable and honest people? Stay away from revolutionary politics and/or stay 
away from all politics. Yes, it is true that your comrades may stab you in the 
back. It is also true that you may stab them first as a precaution against them 
stabbing you.


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Re: [marxmail] Signs point to PSUV collaboration in Maduro kidnapping

2026-01-05 Thread Marv Gandall via groups.io
Thanks, Hari. Nice to see you back posting.  Delcy Rodriguez's message aimed at 
the Trump administratin (above) is very conciliatory, ie. let's " work jointly 
on an agenda of cooperation aimed at shared development" - hardly an expression 
of resolve aimed at inspiring and mobilizing the base to resist further US 
incursions.

Perhaps Rodriguez and other PSUV leaders are not "collaborators" as are 
Machado, Gonzales, and other opponents who want to dismantle the Bolivarian 
system and effectively turn Venezuela into a vassal state of the US. But they 
seem willing enough to bend the knee to Trump in order to retain power and at 
least some semblance of the Bolivarian reforms. Even if the US is wary of  a 
ground invasion, it can still use its air power to inflict a lot of damage and 
my impression is that this is what the PSUV wants to avoid. Whether they can do 
so without adopting the full opposition program to mollify the Americans seems 
doubtful.

Re: your drawing a parallel of "hidden counter-revolutionaries" in Venezuela 
with those which threatened Staln's regime in the USSR, I and others haven't at 
all disputed that there were indeed those at the top and bottom of Soviet 
society who wanted to restore capitalism with the assistance of outside powers. 
*But the issue has always been whether the Old Bolsheviks were part of this 
conspiracy* - dating as far back as 1918 when it was alleged that Bukharin and 
Trotsky were plotting to assassinate Lenin! See: 
https://groups.io/g/marxmail/message/39850 ( 
https://groups.io/g/marxmail/message/39850 )


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Re: [marxmail] Signs point to PSUV collaboration in Maduro kidnapping

2026-01-05 Thread Anthony Boynton via groups.io
Below is the text of the October article from the Miami Herald.

IMHO, the absence of any serious military resistance to the attack is a
strong indication of some sort of deal. The Herald article says Maduro
agreed to the negotiations between the VP Delcy Rodriguez (and her brother)
and Rubio, Trump et al. via Qatar. If true, the deal could include Maduro
(unlikely now IMHO), or Rodriguez et al. may have betrayed Maduro, or Rubio
et al. may have betrayed the PSUV leaders. The PSUV has organized very
large demonstrations against the kidnapping in Caracas and other cities and
its leaders are issuing statements against the attack and in defense of
Venezuelan sovereignty. If the whole PSUV leadership was in on the deal,
most likely the Cubans and the Russians were, too.

VENEZUELA Exclusive: Venezuelan leaders offered U.S. a path to stay in
power without Maduro By Antonio María Delgado Updated October 16, 2025
11:01 AM Gift Article A handout photo released by Venezuela’s Presidency
shows Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro (right) speaking with U.S.
President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Richard Grenell, at the Miraflores
Presidential Palace in Caracas on January 31, 2025. Presidencia de
Venezuela A group of senior Venezuelan government officials, led by Vice
President Delcy Rodríguez and her brother Jorge, who is president of the
National Assembly, have quietly promoted a series of initiatives in recent
months aimed at presenting themselves to Washington as a “more acceptable”
alternative to Nicolás Maduro’s regime, according to people with direct
knowledge of the talks. The proposals, funneled through intermediaries in
Qatar, sought to persuade sectors of the U.S. government that a “Madurismo
without Maduro” could enable a peaceful transition in Venezuela—preserving
political stability without dismantling the ruling apparatus. According to
the sources, Qatari mediators presented to the U.S. two formal proposals
this year, one in April and another in September. Both outlined potential
governing mechanisms without Maduro in power. In those scenarios, Delcy
Rodríguez would serve as the institutional continuity figure, while retired
Gen. Miguel Rodríguez Torres, who is currently in exile and is not related
to the Rodriguez siblings, would head a transitional government. The
central argument, the sources said, was that the Rodríguez siblings
represent a “more palatable” version of so-called chavismo — the socialist
ideology named for deceased leader Hugo Chávez — for Washington, since
neither has been indicted on narcotrafficking charges by U.S. courts.
However, former regime officials— whose accounts have been used by U.S.
prosecutors in cases linked to the so-called Cartel of the Suns—have
implicated both siblings in logistical support and money laundering
operations. Sources told the Miami Herald the offers though Qatar were made
with Maduro’s approval. Qatar as diplomatic, financial channel The contacts
in Qatar reportedly intensified following the Trump administration’s
tougher stance on Caracas, particularly after the U.S. military deployment
in the Caribbean aimed at curbing drug trafficking and dismantling the
Cartel of the Suns, which Washington directly links to Maduro. Qatar, which
has close ties to the Venezuelan government and has been accused by U.S.
officials of sheltering Venezuelan funds, played a key role as
intermediary. All proposals were routed through its capital, Doha, where
according to sources Delcy Rodríguez maintains “a significant relationship”
with members of the Qatari royal family and hides part of her assets.
During one meeting in Doha, a senior member of the royal family reportedly
acknowledged acting as a bridge between Caracas and Washington on
“intelligence and economic cooperation matters.” According to sources, the
proposals were presented to the White House and the State Department by
U.S. Special Envoy Richard Grenell, who earlier this year met with Maduro
at the Miraflores Presidential Palace in Caracas and helped secure the
release of several American citizens whom Washington considered wrongfully
imprisoned by the regime. Grenell, who has been advising the administration
to engage Maduro in negotiations to defuse the escalating diplomatic
standoff, declined to comment for this story. The State Department did not
respond to questions about the Venezuelan leaders’ offer. The ‘Cartel Lite’
formula Some sectors in the Trump administration interpreted the overtures
as part of an informal strategy that became known as ‘Cartel Lite:’ a
softened version of chavismo designed to allow a managed transition without
an abrupt rupture and without dismantling the regime’s core structures. The
April proposal called for Maduro to step down, remain in Venezuelan with
guarantees for his safety, and negotiate an arrangement granting U.S.
companies access to Venezuelan oil and mining industries. In exchange, it
suggested that U.S. prosecutors drop criminal charges against Maduro. Under

Re: [marxmail] Signs point to PSUV collaboration in Maduro kidnapping

2026-01-05 Thread hari kumar via groups.io
Hi Marv:
Those who have no principled support of the revolution inside governments - 
betray the government.
The revolutionary surge brings a lot of people forward, some who last some who 
do not. Same in the USSR -  Same in Venezuela.

The Vice-president - says the Miami Herald - was negotiating with trump for 
months.
I believe this is entirely believable. I do not have a sub - but it allowed me 
here as below - says it will work for others but I am not sure... I got the 
reference via 'Tagespiegel which carried an article referencing this.
https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/world/americas/venezuela/article312516272.html

As I said first to David - and then essentially the same to Tom (although since 
I had missed some crucial words the link was not  clear) - those who doubt that 
there were indeed hidden counter-revolutionaries of various shades (by no means 
were all the same) in the USSR, will not see some of the possible and yet 
essential lessons of the Bolivarian failure.

Cheers, H


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Re: [marxmail] Signs point to PSUV collaboration in Maduro kidnapping

2026-01-04 Thread Fred Fuentes via groups.io
🫓 Delcy Rodríguez sends a message to the US:

Message from Venezuela to the World and to the United States

Venezuela reaffirms its commitment to peace and peaceful coexistence. Our 
country aspires to live without external threats, in an environment of respect 
and international cooperation. We believe that global peace is built first by 
guaranteeing the peace of each nation.

We consider it a priority to move toward a balanced and respectful 
international relationship between the United States and Venezuela, and between 
Venezuela and the countries of the region, based on sovereign equality and 
non-interference. These principles guide our diplomacy with the rest of the 
world.

We extend an invitation to the government of the United States to work jointly 
on an agenda of cooperation aimed at shared development, within the framework 
of international law, and to strengthen lasting communal coexistence.

President Donald Trump: our peoples and our region deserve peace and dialogue, 
not war. This has always been the position of President Nicolás Maduro, and it 
is the position of all of Venezuela at this moment. This is the Venezuela I 
believe in, the one to which I have dedicated my life. My dream is for 
Venezuela to become a great power where all upright Venezuelan men and women 
can come together.

Venezuela has the right to peace, development, sovereignty, and a future.

Delcy Rodríguez,
Caretaker President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela


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Re: [marxmail] Signs point to PSUV collaboration in Maduro kidnapping

2026-01-04 Thread Marv Gandall via groups.io
Alternatively, on second thought, it may not be a case of the PSUV leadership 
having actively or tacitly acquiesced in the kidnapping but of the Trump 
administratpn instead balking at putting boots on the ground and justifiying 
its hesitation by suggesting (or hoping) that the Hernandez government can be 
relied on to satisfy US interests. On va voir.


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