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
NEWS of the recent attempted incursions into Venezuela are a timely reminder of the ever-present threat of US bases in Colombia. On May 3 Venezuelan armed forces picked up a band of mercenaries attempting to enter Venezuela from Colombia in speedboats carrying weapons and other military equipment.
Another incursion was attempted the following day and more mercenaries were captured. Those captured included two former US Green Berets.
Responsibility for the plot was claimed by Florida-based special forces veteran Jordan Goudreau with his private security firm Silvercorp, along with retired Venezuelan Major General Cliver Alcala.
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
Colombia’s success in controlling the drug trade should be recognised and its sovereignty respected, argues Dr GLORY SAAVEDRA
US baseless accusations of drug trafficking and the outrageous putting of a bounty on a president of a sovereign country do not bode well, reports PABLO MERIGUET
FRANCISCO DOMINGUEZ says the US’s bullying conduct in what it considers its backyard is a bid to reassert imperial primacy over a rising China — but it faces huge resistance



