The US has begun to actively oppose the Venezuelan authorities, led by President Nicolas Maduro, fearing the threat of increased influence of Russia, China, Cuba and Iran in the Republic, said a former adviser to the American leader John Bolton.
On Tuesday, a memoir of the former adviser to the US president on national security, Bolton, was released, in which the author described his work in the White House in 2018-19.
“Maduro’s autocratic regime was a threat because of its ties to Cuba and the opportunities it offered to Russia, China and Iran. The threat to Moscow was undeniable, both military and financial, as it spent considerable resources to support Maduro, to dominate the oil and gas Venezuelan industry to the detriment of the United States. Beijing was not so far behind”, – Bolton writes in the book.
According to him, shortly after the onset of 2019, Trump told him that he was worried about Russia and China:
“I do not want to sit and watch. America has resisted external threats in the Western Hemisphere since the Monroe Doctrine, and it is time to revive it after the attempts of President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry to bury it”, – said the ex-adviser.
In addition, he believes that Venezuela posed a threat to the hydrocarbon-rich neighboring Guyana.
Bolton notes that initially Trump even considered negotiating with Maduro, but then he lost interest in this idea.
On Monday, the US president said he was ready for negotiations with the Venezuelan leader only to discuss his resignation.
In Venezuela, in early 2019, mass protests began against President Nicolas Maduro shortly after being sworn in. Juan Guaido, head of the National Assembly, controlled by the opposition, proclaimed himself the interim head of state. A number of Western countries led by the United States announced the recognition of Guaido. In turn, Maduro called the head of parliament a US puppet. Russia, China, Turkey and several other countries supported Maduro as a legitimate president. In Moscow, they called the “presidential status” of Guaido nonexistent.