Trump’s escalation against Venezuela is about more than oil, it is about regaining control over the ‘natural’ zone of influence of the United States at a moment where its hegemony is slipping, argues VIJAY PRASHAD
Oil grab: US moves against Venezuela's CITGO
The nation’s seized oil company is at risk of an immediate break-up — part of the US-led campaign of subversion to topple the legitimate government, writes TIM YOUNG of the Venezuela Solidarity Campaign
NATIONAL TREASURE: A marcher carries a tribute to ‘Super Moustache’ Nicolas Maduro, protected by a shield bearing the name of Pequiven, the nationalised petrochemical company
Evidence suggests Lammy’s proposals would come at a high cost: reduced fairness, diminished trust and greater racial inequality in the criminal justice system, argue TARA LAI QUINLAN and KATHARINA KARCHER
From the workhouses of the 1840s to today’s market capitalism, A Christmas Carol remains a sharp critique of charity rationed by class, says KEITH FLETT
The argument for a “significant expansion” of nuclear power will deliver soaring electricity prices that condemn underserved communities to unending hardship and poverty, argues LINDA PENTZ GUNTER
The new plan sets out an uncompromising bid for global dominance, casting even allies as obstacles to be subdued, writes DIANE ABBOTT
As we approach the half-anniversary of the Grenfell tragedy, the community gathers to remember loved ones while grappling with mixed emotions surrounding the ongoing deconstruction of the tower and the hopeful plans for a memorial, writes EMMA DENT COAD
VENEZUELA’S most prized and lucrative foreign asset, the US-based oil subsidiary CITGO, is on the brink of being broken up to satisfy creditors against the Venezuelan state. The move is part and parcel of the US government’s drive to destroy its economy and bring about regime change in the country.
In pursuit of this goal, the US government has since 2017 imposed crushing economic and trade sanctions on Venezuela, including an oil embargo, a blanket ban on all dealings with Caracas, secondary sanctions and freezing or seizing a number of Venezuelan assets abroad.
The illegal sanctions have resulted in losses of $150 billion to the country, while around $11bn in deposits in banks and funds abroad have been seized or frozen, including $1.2bn gold deposits in the Bank of England.
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The global left must be unwavering in it is support for Venezuela as Washington increases its aggression, and clear-eyed about the West’s cynical motives for targeting it, says CLAUDIA WEBBE
Calls have been made for the return to Venezuela of a two-year-old girl currently being held in the US, after being separated from her family by immigration officials, reports SUSAN GREY
Two months into Donald Trump’s second run as president, what can we glean about his policies towards Latin America so far, asks TIM YOUNG, ahead of this Saturday’s Socialism or Barbarism day school in London
FIONA SIM of the Black Liberation Alliance reports on a whirlwind week in Caracas, including President Maduro’s inauguration