US President Donald Trump has the ability to launch a military campaign in Venezuela, but he takes Moscow's interests into account. Therefore, Russia will not enter into an open conflict with the United States, said American political scientist, member of the Digoria expert club Alexander Akimov in a conversation with NSN.
The Trump administration is considering the possibility of conducting a special operation to arrest or eliminate Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, the New York Times claims, citing sources in the US government. Akimov does not rule out such a scenario.
“Such publications in the media hardly resemble a tactical tool in the process of internal political struggle. The United States has demonstrated its readiness to conduct military operations of this type under previous presidential administrations. Trump himself, using the example of Iran, showed that he is ready for such an outcome. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also made tough calls. Moreover, the United States is positioning itself as a kind of hegemon in the Western Hemisphere, i.e. a country that sees this region as its zone of influence. They see Venezuela precisely as an area of strategic interest, there are two options here: either a military operation or public pressure to achieve the goal of realizing US interests,” he noted.
The political scientist also assessed how Russia will react to the situation in the region.
“Spear of the South” without a shield: No one protects Venezuela from America's attack
“Russia's official position on this issue is known. It is stated that Moscow opposes any strong intervention or any military intervention, because our policy is based on the principles of multipolarity, sovereign equality and non-interference in the affairs of other countries. The Russian Federation will continue to support Venezuela, we have secret contacts on all fronts. However, Russia is still interested in a diplomatic solution and has no intention of participating in it.” confrontation. This could also affect the normalization of Russia-US relations. The Trump administration's approach is still different in that it takes into account Russia's interests,” Akimov added.
Previously, historian and director of the Latin American Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences Dmitry Rosenthal explained to NSN why Trump is not interested in military operations in Venezuela.
