Venezuela's leader pledges military cooperation with Russia
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro pledged a “powerful military cooperation” with Russia following high-level discussions between officials Wednesday, a day after diplomats from the U.S. and several other nations gathered to discuss steps toward a negotiated solution to the South American country’s protracted crisis. “We have reviewed the powerful military cooperation, and we have ratified the path of a powerful military cooperation between Russia and Venezuela for the defense of peace, of sovereignty, the defense of territorial integrity,” Maduro said during a news conference.
news.yahoo.comIranian supertanker carrying condensate docks in Venezuela
An Iran-flagged supertanker carrying more than 2 million barrels of condensate has docked at a Venezuelan port, with both countries facing U.S. sanctions, according to analysts and satellite images analyzed by The Associated Press. The arrival of the oil tanker Starla comes as negotiations continue in Vienna over the Islamic Republic's tattered nuclear deal with world powers, which allowed for oil sales. In 2018, the U.S. unilaterally withdrew from the accord under then President Donald Trump, sparking years of tensions across the wider Mideast that continue today.
news.yahoo.comMaduro, Putin talk after diplomat hints at military activity
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Thursday said he spoke by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin about cooperation between the two countries. The call came a week after Russia’s chief negotiator in talks with the U.S. on tensions over Ukraine said he would “neither confirm nor exclude” the possibility of Russia sending military assets to Cuba and Venezuela if the U.S. and its allies don’t curtail their military activities on Russia’s doorstep.
news.yahoo.comEU reports improvements, old tactics in Venezuela election
Monitors from the European Union say Venezuela’s regional elections last weekend happened under better conditions compared to the country's elections in recent years but were marred by the use of public funds to benefit pro-government candidates.
US targets graft in Venezuela's flagship food box program
Federal prosecutors have unveiled criminal charges against an alleged corruption ring accused of paying millions of dollars in bribes to a top ally of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to profit from lucrative contracts to import food and medicine at a time of widespread hardship in the South American country.
Maduro ally appears in court to face corruption charges
A businessman who prosecutors say was a major conduit for corruption by Nicolás Maduro’s inner circle has appeared for the first time in Miami federal court after an extradition that has further strained relations between the U.S. and Venezuela’s socialist government.
Why Venezuela’s ‘Two Presidents’ Are Ready to Talk
Nicolas Maduro and Juan Guaido have sparred for control of Venezuela for more than two years, each claiming to be country’s rightful president. Now, massive protests and police crackdowns have been replaced by sessions at the negotiating table. They’ve tried before, to little effect. What might be different this time? For one thing, Guaido and other members of the opposition have all but conceded that their attempts to oust Maduro have failed. On his side, Maduro has proved unable to stop Venezu
washingtonpost.comWhy Venezuela’s ‘Two Presidents’ Are Ready to Talk: QuickTake
Nicolas Maduro and Juan Guaido, who have sparred for control of Venezuela for more than two years, each claiming to be country’s rightful president, are preparing for talks. The two sides have talked before, to little effect. What might be different this time? For one thing, Guaido and other members of the opposition have all but conceded that their attempts to oust Maduro have failed. On his side, Maduro has proved unable to stop Venezuela’s continuing economic collapse, in part because of tigh
washingtonpost.comWhy Venezuela’s ‘Two Presidents’ Are Ready to Talk
Nicolas Maduro and Juan Guaido, who have sparred for control of Venezuela for more than two years, each claiming to be country’s rightful president, are preparing for talks. The two sides have talked before, to little effect. What might be different this time? For one thing, Guaido and other members of the opposition have all but conceded that their attempts to oust Maduro have failed. On his side, Maduro has proved unable to stop Venezuela’s continuing economic collapse, in part because of tigh
washingtonpost.comVenezuelan security forces ‘threaten’ opposition leader Juan Guaido and arrest ally
Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido says that the county’s security forces threatend to arrest him at his home and took a close ally into custody. Mr Guaido said that security forces had entered his apartment building in Caracas in an attempt to take him into custody, but left without carrying that out. “The harassment and the threats will not stop us,” said Mr Guaido, according to Reuters.
news.yahoo.comMaduro’s agents arrest opposition leader while surrounding Guaidó’s residence
The Nicolás Maduro regime arrested former opposition deputy Freddy Guevara on Monday, pulling him out of his car on a Caracas highway, while another group of policemen surrounded the residence of Venezuelan opposition chief Juan Guaidó without actually detaining him.
news.yahoo.comReport: Venezuela security forces continue killings, torture
Venezuelan security forces carried out fewer extra-judicial killings in the 12 months through April, a U.N. report said Monday, but it accuses them of a continued pattern of torture or cruel treatment of individuals as well as enforced disappearances and incommunicado detentions. The report from U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights calls on the government of President Nicolas Maduro to cease the use of excessive force during demonstrations, dismantle pro-government armed civilian groups and ensure effective and independent investigations of all killings by security forces. “Accountability remains key to preventing and remedying human rights violations and strengthening the rule of law,” said the report, which covers June 1, 2020, through April 30.
news.yahoo.comDespite ally donations, few Venezuelans get COVID-19 vaccine
Some Venezuelans got a COVID-19 shot this week thanks to a donation of Cuban-developed vaccines, bringing relief to some residents desperate to protect themselves while simultaneously deepening the mystery around the country’s donation-dependent vaccination campaign. Thirty-thousand shots of the three-dose Abdala vaccine entered Venezuela’s inoculation effort just days after Nicolás Maduro's government and Cuban authorities reached an agreement under which Havana is expected to deliver 12 million doses in the following months. “If we look at the promises with the Russian and Chinese vaccines, there’s a lot of emphasis on the agreements and the numbers, and then the delivery of those vaccines and who gets what in Venezuela becomes much more mysterious,” said Jacqueline Mazza, senior adjunct professor of Latin American studies at Johns Hopkins University.
news.yahoo.comUN food shipments for school children arrive in Venezuela
The food assistance agency of the United Nations announced Thursday that its first shipments of supplies for vulnerable Venezuelan school children have arrived in the troubled South American country. The World Food Program will begin operations in Venezuela by providing children take-home packages that include rice, lentils, salt and vegetable oil. The agency earlier this year reached an agreement with the government of President Nicolas Maduro that allows it to provide school meals, though classrooms are currently closed.
news.yahoo.comPeriodismo ‘off-line’ combate la censura en Venezuela
Yo estaba de guardia en ‘El Nacional’ ese domingo en la noche, el 27 de mayo de 2007. Se reinventan en la crisisCon la pandemia de COVID-19, el proyecto de presentación de noticias en las rutas de autobuses de cuatro regiones de Venezuela se vio limitado. “’El Bus TV’ nace en medio de actitudes de censura por parte del Estado hacia el periodismo. Periodismo off-line combate la censura en Venezuela se publicó primero en La Silla Rota. (Editado por Melanie Slone y Gabriela Alejandra Olmos)The post Periodismo ‘off-line’ combate la censura en Venezuela appeared first on Zenger News.
thewestsidegazette.comVenezuelan government seizes headquarters of independent newspaper founded in 1943
The duty of journalists is to keep those who are in power in check. This continues to be difficult in Venezuela where Nicolas Maduro and his supporters harass the Venezuelan editors, writers, reporters, and photojournalists who are doing their job.
Venezuelan governor, former defense minister, dies
A Venezuelan state governor who once served as defense minister for former President Hugo Chavez has died, officials said Saturday. Gen. Jorge Luis García Carneiro was 69. The death was confirmed in a string of tweets from senior officials, including President Nicolás Maduro, who called him “a friend, a brother for life.”
news.yahoo.comOpositor venezolano Leopoldo López: hay que negociar
Leopoldo López, un activista prominente de la oposición venezolana, dijo el miércoles que la reciente oferta de negociación hecha por su movimiento al gobierno del presidente Nicolás Maduro fue motivada por la crisis humanitaria en el país y el prolongado estancamiento político.
Venezuela gives US oilmen house arrest in gesture to Biden
Six American oil executives jailed in Venezuela more than three years ago on corruption charges have been granted house arrest in a gesture of goodwill toward the Biden administration as it reviews its policy toward the politically turbulent South American country.
US weighs policy on Venezuela as Maduro signals flexibility
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s government is intensifying efforts to court the Biden administration as the new U.S. president weighs whether to risk a political backlash in Florida and ease up on sanctions seeking to isolate the socialist leader.
Venezolanos en Colombia denuncian maltrato en su país
Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. En Caracas, el presidente de la Asamblea Nacional, Jorge Rodríguez, rechazó el jueves en un comunicado los hechos de violencia registrados en territorio venezolano, limítrofe con Colombia, y advirtió que Venezuela no permitirá que “grupos armados delincuenciales” del vecino país atenten en contra de su país. El documento agregaba que esos hechos “son resultado del conflicto armado interno que Colombia no ha sabido responder, causando daños bilaterales”. ARAUQUITA – “Nosotros salimos porque como a una cuadra de mi casa explotaron unos artefactos. Copyright 2021 The Associated Press.
Fiscalía Venezuela abre nuevo proceso a opositor Juan Guaidó
CARACAS, VENEZUELA - MARCH 12: Opposition leader and Interim President of Venezuela Juan Guaido speaks during a demonstration against the blackout and the Nicolás Maduro government on March 12, 2019 in Caracas, Venezuela. Juan Guaido, declared interim president by the National assembly and accepted by many members of the international community called a demonstration to protest against the blackout which is affecting Venezuela. According to his words, it a consequence of a corruption and mismanagement of the government of Nicolas Maduro. (Photo by Eva Marie Uzcategui/Getty Images)
Orquesta sinfónica móvil busca sanar el alma de venezolanos
Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. Este material no puede ser publicado, difundido, reescrito o redistribuido sin permiso. “En medio de una pandemia, Suramérica propone una vacuna artística”, dijo Sánchez a The Associated Press antes de comenzar el recorrido en Barquisimeto, ciudad ubicada a unos 270 kilómetros al oeste de Caracas. Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reservedIf you need help with the Public File, call (954) 364-2526.
Chief European Union diplomat in Venezuela leaves country
European Union Ambassador to Venezuela Isabel Brilhante Pedrosa leaves a meeting with Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza where she was given a letter of "persona non grata" and given 72 hours to leave the country, at Arreaza's office in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)CARACAS – The chief European Union diplomat in Venezuela left the country on Tuesday, a week after the government of Nicolás Maduro ordered her expulsion following the EU's decision to impose sanctions on several Venezuelan officials accused of undermining democracy or violating human rights. AdThe move marked the second time in almost eight months that Brilhante Pedrosa was declared persona non grata and ordered to leave Venezuela. Both cases were related to the European Union sanctions against officials and allies of Maduro. Last June, Brilhante Pedrosa was able to remain in Venezuela after the European Union high representative for foreign affairs, Josep Borrell, and Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza agreed on the need to maintain diplomatic relations.
Government-owned hotel stands as evidence of deepening class divide in Venezuela
CARACAS, Venezuela – The Hotel Humboldt in Venezuela is the project of an extravagant military dictator’s use of oil royalties in the 1950s. Now it stands as irrefutable evidence of the country’s deepening class divide. Former President Hugo Chávez started to restore the 14-floor tower in 2012, and despite shortages of food and medications, President Nicolas Maduro completed the project in 2018. He shared the video on social media and talked about the hotel’s casino on national radio. Related social mediaWeddle reported from Bogota, Colombia and Torres contributed to this report from Miami.
Venezuelan economy increasingly depends on bartering and dollars
CARACAS, Venezuela – At 21 years old, David Soho trades plantains in the streets of Caracas, Venezuela’s capital. Soho barters plantains for items like soap, butter, and rice, which he resells in bulk to a local market. Photo by Guillermo Legaria/Getty ImagesWith hyperinflation, President Nicolas Maduro replaced the bolivar for the bolivar soberano in 2018. Each bolivar soberano was worth about 100,000 bolivares. It became so worthless, street vendors started to use it as craft paper to make art.
Stunts in the streets for Venezuelan motorcycle virtuoso
Stuntman Pedro Aldana performs a wheelie on his motorcycle during an exhibition in the Ojo de Agua neighborhood of Caracas, Venezuela, Sunday, Jan. 10, 2021. The motorcycle trick rider and adrenalin junkie who prefers the nickname "Crazy Pedro," draws masses of Venezuelans starved for entertainment to his shows across the country. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)CARACAS – If police aren't shutting down his street shows for lack of permits, Venezuelan motorcycle trick rider Pedro Aldana is battling coronavirus quarantines or the tropical rains that turn the asphalt slick and send fans running for cover. For the last decade, he's been travelling across Venezuela to put on shows drawing up to 7,000 spectators. Aldana says he’s worked official channels in the past to get permission, but has been frustrated by bureaucrats demanding bribes.
US veteran behind failed Venezuela plot says two American mercenaries detained
A U.S. military veteran who has claimed responsibility for a failed armed incursion into Venezuela to oust President Nicolas Maduro said on Monday that two U.S. citizens working with him have been detained by Venezuelan authorities. Venezuelan authorities said 10 people involved in a "mercenary incursion" were detained on Monday along the Caribbean coast, saying the 10 were part of the U.S.-backed plot. Venezuelan state television said two U.S. citizens were among those detained but did not provide their identities. But the American military veteran, Jordan Goudreau, who leads a Florida-based security company called Silvercorp USA, on Monday told Reuters that two Americans working with him, Aaron Berry and Luke Denman, had been captured. Washington has imposed tough economic sanctions against Venezuela in an effort to oust Maduro, whom it accuses of having rigged elections in 2018.
cnbc.comMany Venezuelans can't afford to stay indoors as Caracas enters quarantine
A crowded bus with people using protective masks passes through a checkpoint after the start of quarantine in response to the spreading of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Caracas, Venezuela, March 16, 2020. Many Venezuelans say they fear contracting the virus as they know there are few healthcare resources to treat them if they need treatment. Maduros government is encouraging all Venezuelans to buy masks, or fashion their own, for protection. But Jose Luis Nieves, a 32-year-old foraging for food in a rubbish dump by Caracas Plaza Venezuela, said he could not afford to stay indoors. I dont think its coronavirus, she said, while praising the quarantine to limit its spread.
feeds.reuters.comVenezuela crisis is 'comparative to Syria': Opposition leader Juan Guaido pleads for international support in Davos
DAVOS, Switzerland Venezuela's Juan Guaido pleaded for international support at the World Economic Forum on Thursday, saying the deepening crisis in Caracas was "comparative to Syria." His arrival in Davos comes exactly one year after the National Assembly leader took to the streets to declare himself the South American country's rightful interim president. At the time, it marked the boldest challenge to President Nicolas Maduro's leadership in years. But Maduro with the broad support of the military has refused to cede power. In an emotional address to world leaders at the forum, Guaido said the oil-rich but cash-poor country is facing an "international criminal conglomerate, and we need your help."
cnbc.comChevron expects $10 billion to $11 billion charge in the fourth quarter; plans asset sales
U.S. oil major Chevron on Tuesday said it expects to write down the value of its assets $10 billion to $11 billion this quarter and is considering selling some natural gas projects to prepare for long-term low prices. The second-largest U.S. oil company, which plans to hold its 2020 spending program flat at $20 billion, said it may sell shale gas properties and its stake in a Canadian liquefied natural gas project. Chevron said it expected writedowns this quarter related to a deepwater Gulf of Mexico project, which needs higher oil prices to churn a profit, and shale gas in Appalachia, which has suffered from low natural gas prices. Chevron recently warned of massive cost overruns at a giant Tengiz oil project in Kazakhstan. Overall costs are projected to rise 25% to $45.2 billion, with Chevron's share of the overrun expected to be about $4 billion to $5 billion.
cnbc.comI left Venezuela fleeing from a dictator, only to find another one in America | Opinion
I will never forget standing in front of our TV in Caracas in 2007, watching in tears the last minutes that Radio Caracas Television one of the most popular TV channels in Venezuela was on air before it was shut down by Chvez. He had decided to silence them when months earlier they had exposed the high levels of corruption and the crisis in Venezuela. When a dictator doesnt like the truth being exposed, they call the media fake news and they censor it. If Trump had the power to do the same, you could bet he would shut down CNN and the New York Times.
sun-sentinel.comWidespread blackout hits Venezuela, government blames 'electromagnetic attack'
More than half of Venezuela's 23 states lost power on Monday, according to Reuters witnesses and reports on social media, a blackout the government blamed on an "electromagnetic attack." Venezuelan Information Minister Jorge Rodriguez said the outage on Monday was caused by an "electromagnetic attack," without providing evidence. The oil-rich country's hyperinflationary economic crisis has led to widespread shortages in food and medicine, prompting over 4 million Venezuelans to leave the country. Venezuela's national power grid has fallen into disrepair after years of inadequate investment and maintenance, according to the opposition and power experts. "I live in the eastern part of the city and there the lights go out every day.
cnbc.comCaracas mayor arrested, accused of plotting coup
Caracas mayor arrested, accused of plotting coup CBS News producer Naomi Choy Smith talks about how Venezuela's opposition leaders are demanding the release of the mayor of Caracas, Antonio Ledezma. He's accused of plotting violence against the government of President Nicolas Maduro.
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