A.G. Hadfield Artist

You see a lot claims that Venezuela has nothing to do with drugs because most of the fentanyl comes from elsewhere. I want to address this: First off, fentanyl isn't the only drug in the world and there is still fentanyl coming from Venezuela (or at least there was). Second, cocaine, which is the main drug trafficked out of Venezuela, is a profit center for all of the Latin America cartels. If you cut out the money from cocaine (or even reduce it) you substantially weaken the cartels overall. Also, cocaine is bad too! Third, yes, a lot of fentanyl is coming out of Mexico. That continues to be a focus of our policy in Mexico and is a reason why President Trump shut the border on day one. Fourth, I see a lot of criticism about oil. About 20 years ago, Venezuela expropriated American oil property and until recently used that stolen property to get rich and fund their narcoterrorist activities. I understand the anxiety over the use of military force, but are we just supposed to allow a communist to steal our stuff in our hemisphere and do nothing? Great powers don't act like that. The United States, thanks to President Trump's leadership, is a great power again. Everyone should take note.

Maduro declares a state of emergency and calls for mobilization, according to Venezuela’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Russia’s war has opened Pandora’s box. Conflicts are now waged through military means. A struggle for control over Venezuelan oil is underway. Will strikes on Venezuela affect Russia’s shadow fleet? Undoubtedly. "Venezuelan oil" plays a major role for the so-called shadow fleet. At one point, Rosneft (Sechin) invested large sums in Venezuela’s oil sector. In fact, the shadow transfer of part of the oil industry to the Russians was the price paid for preserving Maduro’s regime. Today, Russians mix Russian oil with Venezuelan oil, which is also sold through the shadow fleet, and market it as oil from third countries. If Trump succeeds in a rapid change of the Maduro regime, it will not stop but will complicate the operations of Russia’s shadow fleet. Everyone also remembers, after the defeats in Syria and Iran, that Russia does not really help its "partners." The only thing it can offer is asylum for those fleeing.