Across Latin America, the rise of right-wing dictatorships and US backing for democratically-elected right-wing fascist presidents is indicating the way forward for the masses. There needs to be a permanent reversal of the neoliberal policies to create inclusive societies based upon socialist principles. This means a return to the revolutionary movements that made anti-imperialist struggle a permanent feature.

After all, Chavez is not merely history. His political power was derived from the social movements in Venezuela which supported his socialist reforms. The 1992 coup attempt, in which Chavez, as a military officer, sought to overthrow the government of Carlos Perez, indicated the possibilities of change to the Venezuelan people. As he delivered his message to the people after the failed coup attempt, holding himself accountable for the lack of success, Chavez instigated change within the mind frame of the people. “Por ahora”, for now, the revolution had to be paused, but not the mobilisation, which saw Chavez triumph at the polls in 1998 to implement radical socialist change. Once again, the US was facing a reality already experienced in Chile – socialist revolution democratically chosen. And as in Chile, similar tactics were implemented, with different results. In 2002, a short-lived coup against Chavez was instigated. However, the military and the people mobilised against the right-wing interference and within 48 hours, the right-wing, backed by the US, were faced with a phenomenon they had not reckoned with. Destroying the Bolivarian Revolution would not merely require the deposing of its leader, but an unravelling of the mobilisation supporting Chavez and participating in the country’s revolution.

It is from these foundations that Chavez was able to defy imperialism in Venezuela, in Latin America, and within the international community. Divesting the country of the influence of the International Monetary Fund in 2007 was yet another step indicating the government’s willingness to eradicate exploitation of the country’s resources and turn, instead, to collaborative endeavours to politically and economically empower countries and people in Latin America.

At an international level, Chavez’s denunciations of US foreign policy were constant, as was his support for anti-colonial struggle, notably in Palestine. In 2010, Chavez described Israel as a genocidal entity. “One day the genocidal state of Israel will be put into its place, and let’s hope that a really democratic state emerges there, with which we can share a path and ideas.” Earlier in 2009, Venezuela under Chavez cut ties with Israel over the colonial power’s “Operation Cast Lead” aggression against the enclave in which white phosphorus was used against Palestinian civilians. However, Chavez’s support for Palestinians was not merely rhetorical. He engaged with Palestinians politically and diplomatically, as well as offering humanitarian aid and support – a stance which was also incorporated in Venezuelan politics after his death in 2013.

Chavez was about implementing socialist alternatives both as a duty and as a right – a process abhorred by US imperialism. The Bolivarian Revolution, like the Cuban Revolution, is a liberation process and a form of resistance to the empire. The Cuban academic and ambassador to Venezuela German Sanchez correctly describes the Bolivarian process thus: “Securing immediate benefits for the people and completing the political defeat of the opposition and its foreign allies were immediate tasks.” After Chavez, the same urgency to defeat imperialism remains.

The first signs of cancer were found in Chávez in May 2011. In June he underwent two surgeries at a specialized center in Havana. His Cuban surgeons found and removed a malignant tumor that had metastasized with sinister persistence, despite all preventive measures. New operations were needed. This athletic man, who was full of strength and physically robust, passed away on March 5, 2013 at the age of 58.

Expanding on this topic, Eva Golinger writes, «It is enough to know that one man who had for several years been one of his closest aides, who was often alone with him and brought him his food, coffee, and water, is now a protected witness in the United States. Soon Leamsy Salazar’s covert actions and close collaboration with intelligence agencies in Washington will be revealed».

The name of Hugo Chávez’s chief bodyguard was rarely mentioned in the media while the president was alive. Due to the nature of his work Leamsy Villafaña Salazar shunned publicity, did not like to be photographed, and tried to stay in the shadows. Chávez considered him to be a reliable, incorruptible, and professionally trained Bolivarian officer. This was precisely how the president described him on a TV broadcast about the attempted pro-American coup in April 2002. Conspirators managed to depose Chávez for three days, but with the support of the people and army, he triumphantly returned to the presidential Miraflores palace. From the roof of his palace he was welcomed by the military, among whom Salazar was readily visible, victoriously waving the Venezuelan flag. That image became the symbol of the victory over the counter-revolution.

Oddly enough, little is known about Salazar, and mostly from tight-lipped American sources. He was born in 1974 to a large family living in Petare, a slum district in the Venezuelan capital. After high school he entered the naval academy, graduating in 1998. He was a middling student, finishing 27th out of his class of 55. Nonetheless, in 1999 Salazar was tapped to be a presidential honor guard. Tito Rincón Bravo, Venezuela’s minister of defense and father of Leamsy’s first wife, played an important role in this appointment. Salazar became a personal assistant to Chávez. That job came with a very intense workload, due to the frantic pace of the president’s life.

After the events of 2002, Salazar was unexpectedly posted to a naval base in the provinces – in Punto Fijo (in Falcón State), but in 2006 Chávez ordered Salazar’s return to his former duties in the security detail.

Following Chávez’s death, Salazar provided security for the president of the National Assembly, Diosdado Cabello. But oddities in Salazar’s behavior made Cabello uneasy. At that time debate was still raging about the causes of Chávez’s death and the people who could have been involved, and so Cabello eventually asked the minister of defense to transfer Salazar to another post. At some point during this period Salazar married once again. His new wife was Anabel Linares Leal, a graduate of the military academy who had been presented with her officer’s sword from Chávez’s own hands. For a while Anabel worked with the financial accounts of the Venezuelan armed forces at Banco Bicentenario, which means that she had access to secret information about arms purchases abroad. The newlyweds applied for permission to travel to the Dominican Republic for their honeymoon. That permission was granted, and soon the couple was in Santo Domingo, but from there flew on to Spain. A special plane belonging to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) flew Salazar and his family from Spain to the US.

This is how Emili J. Blasco, a Washington correspondent for the Spanish newspaper ABC who has often served as a mouthpiece for propaganda from US intelligence services, described Salazar’s escape. He claimed that in Spain the Americans had subjected the Salazars to lengthy interrogations in order to determine the «true objectives of their break with the regime».

The stories about Salazar in the international media, which were similar in tone and had obviously come from the same source, emphasize that while Chávez was alive, Salazar had been a «committed Bolivarian», but that after his death Salazar had decided to break with the regime. Therefore, Salazar had held secret negotiations with the DEA for 13 months, not only to arrange his escape, but also to obtain certain promises regarding his own safety, as well as that of his wife and children. But the CIA is not mentioned, only the DEA. The reason for that is clear – the CIA is a spy agency, and any indicator of possible long-standing secret ties with this «bureau of hit men» was something Salazar’s protectors tried to avoid, knowing that Venezuela’s SEBIN (Servicio Bolivariano de Inteligencia Nacional) counterintelligence agency would investigate the story of his involvement in Chávez’s murder.

Now the couple is in the US, living under federal protection, and they give testimony on a wide range of issues, but primarily on the «involvement» of various figures in the Bolivarian regime in drug trafficking, including military leaders. It should be kept in mind that long before Salazar made his escape, US intelligence agencies had begun to plant false information in the media about the existence of a so-called «Cartel of the Suns» (Cartel de los Soles), which was allegedly led by Diosdado Cabello and a group of Venezuelan generals with ties to him. Cabello was compromised as a preemptive measure, because US intelligence agencies saw him as the most likely successor to Chávez, but holding more radical anti-American views. Immediately after his escape, Salazar was recruited into this smear campaign against Cabello. Some of the information obtained from Salazar (or rather from his handlers in the CIA and DEA) was used by Emili J. Blasco in his book Bumerán Chávez, which was published simultaneously in Washington and Madrid in April 2015.

In particular, Salazar recounted how he had accompanied Diosdado Cabello on an excursion during which he had witnessed that leader of parliament’s (!) «direct involvement» in the late-night dispatch of drug-laden speedboats from the Paraguaná peninsula in Falcón State. For whom these drugs were intended and why this was done so close to the islands of Aruba and Curaçao, where there are surveillance outposts for the Pentagon, as well as CIA stations and DEA offices, Salazar did not explain. Based on Blasco’s commentary, one can conclude that the boats were headed for Cuba! What’s more, Salazar claimed that while accompanying Cabello he also had the opportunity to see his «secret armored vaults filled with US currency», with «mountains upon mountains of wrapped bills from floor to ceiling». That’s what a drug lord’s stash looks like in a Hollywood movie. According to Salazar’s account – or rather, the cover story that US intelligence services dreamed up for him – the troubles experienced by one of the guards who refused to take part in the drug deals were the last straw, prompting Salazar’s decision to flee: «They threatened to physically exterminate the man».

The pro-American media does its utmost to gloss over the questions that inevitably arise about Salazar’s participation in the preparations for Chávez’s murder. They claim that there can be no doubts about Salazar: he honorably served the regime and idolized Chávez until he realized that those immediately above him were mixed up in drug trafficking. However, the investigation conducted by SEBIN raises doubts about Salazar’s «spotless rectitude». Even his mother has admitted that Leamsy’s work in the presidential guard weighed heavily on him. But he was in no rush to distance himself from Chávez, because Salazar’s primary employer was someone else, and those people insisted that he strictly discharge his duties.

Recent media revelations about ties between Venezuela’s Cartel of the Suns and the Sinaloa Cartel have demonstrated the imagination and verve with which US intelligence agencies are fabricating «deals», with the intention of compromising their enemy. Allegedly «Chapo» Guzmán himself was in Venezuela in August and September of 2015 in order to discuss some joint projects. Passing mention has been made of his «business» trips to the country in 2009 and 2010 and of the warm nature of his relations with General Hugo Carvajal, a close associate of Diosdado Cabello. This is the same Carvajal whom the DEA tried to kidnap from the island of Aruba in the summer of 2014 – despite his diplomatic passport – and ship off to the US as a drug trafficker. Officials on the island prevented this from happening, and the general returned to Venezuela where he was greeted by President Maduro, Diosdado Cabello, and other Bolivarian leaders as a hero. It would be naive to think the DEA’s hunt for Carvajal was over. He is still on their «wanted list» because of evidence fabricated by US agents. That list also includes the names of others whom the DEA has identified as the ringleaders of the Cartel of the Suns.

Salazar’s statements are sharply at odds with the image of the honorable patriot he had previously cultivated. Quite revealing are Salazar’s allegations that Chávez died not in March 2013 but in December of 2012. Supposedly all of Chávez’s relatives took part in this ruse, as well as the members of the Bolivarian government, the leaders of Cuba, and Cuban counterintelligence. This was done in order to preserve the continuity of government authority serving the interests of «Maduro’s factions». Thus, every decree and resolution signed by the president after December can be declared fraudulent, and the Maduro government – illegal.

Meanwhile, the buzz of reporting on the Venezuelan leaders’ «drug deals» is getting louder. The plan devised by US intelligence is clearly evident: to distract the global public from the fact that Salazar is the most likely candidate to have killed Chávez. The Bolivarian media calls Salazar «Judas». Official (and unofficial) agencies in Venezuela are collecting evidence of his criminal activities, his clandestine meetings with representatives from the CIA and DEA, and the possibility that he gave the Americans information about the president’s travel itineraries and individuals with whom he had planned to meet, as well as biological material that belonged to Chávez.

The Americans are doing their best to impede this work. In Madrid, for example, the CIA station has manufactured a crisis surrounding the Venezuelan Defense Attaché Office staff, accusing them of spying on members of the opposition. But of course the real issue is quite different – the threat of lurid revelations about Chávez’s murder. Right now it is difficult to say who exactly will reveal the whole truth. That could end up being an idealist like Snowden – someone who considers lynching a politician like this to be unacceptable. There is some hope that a material incentive might prove effective: Venezuela’s leaders have decided to offer a financial reward for any specific information about the individuals who coordinated and carried out the murder of Hugo Chávez.

At the center of Correa's foreign policy activities is the strengthening of regional Latin American organizations in which there are no U.S. representatives: the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR), the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of America (ALBA), and others. Correa always supported Hugo Chavez' initiatives which enabled the lessening of the region's dependence on the Empire, the nullification of the Monroe Doctrine in the Western Hemisphere, and the interaction of Latin American countries with other centers of power. In this respect Ecuador is setting an example by establishing comprehensive cooperation with China and Russia in the political, economic and military fields. U.S. presence in the country is decreasing, and the Obama administration is trying to break this trend. President Correa has been designated as the main culprit in the deterioration of American-Ecuadorian relations.

It was Correa who initiated the international campaign against the Chevron corporation. The arbitration court in The Hague released the company from payment of multibillion dollar fines for polluting the Amazon river basin on the territory of Ecuador. Correa could not agree with such a humiliating and unjustified decision. He visited the ecological disaster zone and showed TV journalists his hands covered with crude oil left at a former extraction site, saying, «This is the result of the company using outdated technologies». Correa urged consumers not to buy Chevron products. An Ecuadorian court allowed a suit filed by Indians living in the ecological disaster area to proceed and compelled the company to pay 19 billion dollars in damages for the harm inflicted on the environment and the health of the population. Making use of its great experience in fighting such suits, Chevron obtained a decision in its favor from the International Arbitration Court in The Hague. However, Correa is not giving up, and he has secured the support of UNASUR and ALBA and urged the international community to show its solidarity with Ecuador. There are now no Chevron assets in the country, but the claims of the Ecuadorian plaintiffs could be satisfied in Argentina, Brazil or Canada, which threatens serious financial consequences for the company. The Obama administration has decided to protect its interests at any cost, and that is one of the factors which is directing U.S. intelligence toward a radical solution to the «Correa problem». 

The president of Ecuador is also hindering the development of the Pacific Alliance, one of Washington's neoliberal geopolitical projects, which includes Mexico, Colombia, Peru and Chile. The Alliance was created to neutralize the ALBA bloc, and Ecuador's membership in the latter alliance does not jibe with U.S. strategic aims in the Asia Pacific region at all.

Spying on the Ecuadorian president by U.S. intelligence has increased noticeably. Interception of Correa's telephone conversations and the communications of his inner circle, his security agents and his police cordon lets the Americans keep track of the president's movements and event sites, participant lists and security systems. Constant monitoring provides ample material for identifying vulnerable spots in the organization of security. Recently, in his traditional Saturday televised speech, Correa told Ecuadorians about the suspicious concentration of U.S. military personnel at the American embassy in Quito. «All embassies have their military attaches,» said Correa, «usually no more than one. But here they have over 50!» He said to Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino, «Verify this information! Such a thing [the large number of American military representatives] should not be. They should be brought to a normal level».

The president also demanded that an incident on the Ecuador-Colombia border be investigated in which an Ecuadorian helicopter with several American military personnel on board was shot at. Correa's concern is understandable; the U.S. base in Manta was closed in 2009, but Pentagon military advisors and U.S. intelligence agents conduct operations on Ecuadorian territory with no limitations. 

The intensification of the spying and subversion activities of American intelligence in Ecuador is obvious. According to information obtained from Cuban experts by the site Contrainjerencia.com, CIA personnel alone were doubled in 2012-2013 at the Ecuadorian station. Dozens of new agents arrived in the country. They operate not only from the territory of the U.S. embassy in Quito, at which there are at least a hundred diplomats (!), but they also use the consulate in Guayaquil. In order to make room for the increased number of U.S. intelligence personnel in this strategically important port city, the State Department had to build a new consulate building which, according to one intelligence agency friendly to Ecuador, houses NSA electronic equipment. The consulate is headed by David Lindwall, who arrived in the country after a tour in Iraq as Counselor for Political-Military Affairs. Lindwall has also been a Political Officer at the embassies in Bogota, Managua, Tegucigalpa, Asuncion and other Latin American capitals. His name often appears in WikiLeaks publications. Even a quick analysis of telegrams bearing his signature leads to the conclusion that Lindwall is an experienced career employee of the CIA who is well versed in Latin American affairs and has been sent to Ecuador to resolve very delicate problems. 

President Correa has often called the United States an «arrogant» power which is trying to force its understanding of «universal democratic values» on the world and give others «lessons on morality and good behavior». The president constantly points out that the U.S. has one of the world’s most imperfect election systems which makes it possible for the losers to win. Correa considers the attempts of the Agency for International Development (USAID) to force American patterns of democracy on Ecuador and other countries as if they were colonies to be «insulting». Recently, when commenting on USAID's termination of financing for several projects in the country in the amount of 32 million dollars, Correa offered Washington, not without sarcasm, to help bolster American democracy on the same amount. 

The USAID office is leaving Ecuador, but U.S. intelligence operations for destabilizing the country continue. By all appearances, new attacks in this area will be made in connection with Correa's plans to reduce the size of the armed forces and transfer part of the military personnel to police agencies. Anonymous «army dissidents» are already making hostile statements with regard to Correa and his attempts to «take Chavez' place on the continent». This wording directly indicates what forces are behind the campaign being launched against Correa. 

During a police uprising in September 2010 the president of Ecuador was caught in the crossfire of snipers and narrowly escaped death. Might not U.S. intelligence be planning something similar in the near future? After all, after the bombing of the World Trade Center in New York in 2001, intelligence agencies received carte blanche to eliminate those designated as enemies of the U.S. No one has repealed that decision.

Someone will say – is it the «conspiracy theory» again? Is it the story about the cruel methods used by the United States ruling circles to clear the way for establishing Pax Americana – from unprovoked wars to individual terror? Exactly… The cleansing aimed at getting rid of «inconvenient» unfriendly politicians continues. The Obama’s credibility has suffered a lot since he took office. He has started to face crisis situations more frequently. The confidence is growing in the country and abroad that some forces of global establishment call the shots behind the scenes by influencing the administration’s decision making. 

As a result of Syrian deadlock, the US needs to counterbalance the failure by reaching breakthroughs in some other key directions of foreign policy. Cautious sounding out Tehran to see if is ready to narrow the gap of differences and step on the way of constructive dialogue hardly has any prospects for future taking into consideration the influence of Israeli lobby in the United States. This is one of the reasons Washington has intensified subversive activities against Venezuela. The efforts are concentrated on undermining the country’s economic, financial and political stability, step by step the US special services implement a series of operations aimed at toppling Nicolas Maduro, the successor of Hugo Chavez. The story with the presidential plane gives reasons for alarm. As is known Nicolas Maduro refused to take part in the 68th session of United Nations General Assembly, there was information from some sources that he was going to be assassinated in New York. Mr. Maduro had visited China before the General Assembly started its work to sign a number of agreements on energy, construction of car assembly facilities, as well as on getting multibillion loans among other things. A month before his departure for China, the President ordered to thoroughly check his Airbus A-319CJ after it had gone through the five months (!) maintenance at Airbus in France. Maduro said he had a hunch («corazonada») to justify his decision. It was not in vain. The Venezuelan technical experts found a serious fault in one of the wings. That forced the Venezuelan President to make the trip to China on a plane belonging to the regional group ALBA, an Ilyushin IL-96 belonging to the Cuban airline Cubana de Aviacion. 

To complicate things, the US at first forbade Maduro to overfly Puerto-Rico, something that never happened before. Initially the pilots had to insert corrections into the flight plan to go around it and fly along the unknown path, including the skies over the Arctic. The United States changed its position finally and gave the last minute permission to take the route through the Puerto Rican airspace. Upon the return from his China trip, Maduro put the blame for what happened on «international reactionary circles», saying that they had been informed about the planned China trip and had been plotting against him. They thought that by killing Nicolas Maduro they would put an end to the Bolivarian revolution. According to him, they knew little about the Venezuelan people and what the Bolivarian armed forces were capable of. The US State Department wanted him to come up with corresponding evidence to prove the fact of plot, the outlets involved in propaganda efforts do their best to make the Venezuelan President look like a «laughing stock». Airbus refutes the accusations on the part of Venezuelan leadership, which is adamant to go the whole hog and make head or tail of it so that all the details of the planned subversive action would come to the surface. Airbus has started its own investigation. It is believed in Venezuela that the suspects are the US Central Intelligence Agency’s residence in France, Israeli Mossad and French power structures, which have acted most frequently as US partners recently. Washington appears to believe the elimination of Maduro will lead to internecine struggle in the Bolivarian leadership ranks, undermine the existing balance between civilian powers and the country’s military and clear the way for the victory of radical opposition. Its leader Enrique Capriles cooperates with Washington and Tel Aviv. If he gains revenge for the defeat at the last presidential election, then an «exemplary butchery» of the incumbent government supporters is guaranteed. That’s what they should constantly remember and counter any attempts by the «fifth column» to drive a wedge in the relationship between the Chavez associates – Nicolas Maduro and Diosdado Cabello, the President of the Venezuelan National Assembly (parliament). 

There was one more sign Maduro was in jeopardy. Helmin Wiels, the leader of Pueblo Soberano (Sovereign People, the largest political party in the Estates after the October 2012 election) has been murdered recently on the Island of Curaçao, 40 kilometers from Venezuela. After his election victory in October last year, Wiels has tried to create a left-wing and centrist coalition. Of all left wing politicians of Curaçao, he was the closest associate of Chavez, and then Maduro. He stood for full independence of the island and an end to the United States military presence there. The American armed forces are stationed in Curaçao under the pretext of countering drug traffic; the US aircraft patrol the areas in the vicinity of Venezuela. The CIA residence in Willemstad that acts under the cover of US General Consulate in Curaçao has targeted Wiels since a long time as the politician, who posed a major threat to the United States interests being «funded by Chavist regime». All his movements (especially visits to Caracas and Havana) were closely watched, phone calls tapped, internet messages intercepted. He was shot seven times while enjoying a rest on the island’s Marie Pampoen beach. The bodyguards had been sent home and the killers knew about it. Police detained one of suspects but he was reported to «commit a suicide» while being behind bars. The islanders don’t believe this story. Nothing is known about other perpetrators of the crime. It’s quite possible the ones who were behind the assassination are enjoying themselves in some place like Miami, for instance, waiting for new missions to be set, while the bodies of «local» killers are resting in the barrels filled with cement lying on the bottom of the Caribbean Sea.

One cannot but admire the single-mindedness with which President Maduro is fighting to assert his authority and his image as Chavez’s reliable successor. In many respects, Venezuela’s new president is following the advice and recommendations given to him by Chavez during their final conversations in the clinics of Havana and Caracas. With regard to the steps being taken by Maduro within the country, the desire to establish a dialogue with the moderate sector of the «middle class», to keep confrontation with this part of society to a minimum, is clearly visible. Maduro has launched strong measures in the fight against crime, as well as the transportation and concealment of food products. It should be noted that the «fifth column» have been aggressively pursuing and are still pursuing «special operations» like these in order to compromise the regime. Its network of agents is being exposed by security agencies and prosecuted in court for acts of sabotage. The fight against corruption is also being included in the agenda. The recent arrests of «thieves and fraudsters» in government bodies has shown that there will be no mercy for corrupt officials. 

Maduro’s first international visit was to Cuba, with which the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela is linked through common strategic, ideological, energy, trade, economic and military ties. This was followed by official visits to the Mercosur countries Uruguay, Argentina and Brazil. Maduro also found time in his extremely busy agenda to visit Haiti, Nicaragua, Ecuador and Bolivia. The western media did everything possible to hush up his visits to kindred spirits Daniel Ortega, Evo Morales and Rafael Correa. It has censured and distorted statements made by Maduro that Chavez’s policy for the development of a comprehensive integration strategy in the region will continue, including through the implementation of a joint oil policy, in every way possible. The attention of the media has been redirected to less important issues, in particular why Maduro currently prefers to use Cubana de Aviacion’s Russian-made IL-93-300 for his travels abroad. Different explanations are being put forward, but the version heard most often is that from the information provided by former CIA agent Edward Snowden, it appears that American NSA employees equipped «aerobuses» sold to «unfriendly regimes» with top secret surveillance equipment. 

Maduro has also paid visits to Spain, France and Italy. The Venezuelan leader’s visit to the Vatican had considerable resonance. Maduro’s conversation with the Pope lasted little more than twenty minutes, but during that short time important issues like the fight against poverty, the fight against drug trafficking, and the maintenance of an atmosphere of religious tolerance in Venezuela were all touched upon. Maduro made it clear that more attention would be given to the country’s relationship with the Catholic Church, including its financial support. Pope Francis and Maduro agreed to maintain an ongoing dialogue between the Church and the government, and Maduro presented Pope Francis with a portrait of Simón Bolívar, a picture with the image of Our Lady of Coromoto, the Patroness of Venezuela, and a statue of Jose Gregorio Hernandez, a physician and devout Catholic who many believers think will be canonised. 

Nicolás Maduro’s first visit to Moscow was a busy one. Monday 1 July was dominated by the topics under discussion at the Forum of Gas Exporting Countries. On Tuesday, the Venezuelan president was received by the State Duma to begin with and then by the Kremlin. President Vladimir Putin welcomed his Venezuelan guest in the Green Drawing Room: «I am pleased to note that you have picked up the baton from your predecessor, one of the most prominent leaders in Latin America, Hugo Chavez. Our trade and economic ties have reached a new level… all our plans are developing successfully»… According to Putin, both sides are working successively to diversify their ties. The Russian president named investment and energy cooperation, as well as military-technical links, among the accomplishments of Russian-Venezuelan cooperation. The effectiveness of the partnership is borne out every day on Venezuela’s oil fields, where Gazprom, Rosneft and Lukoil are extracting black gold from hydrocarbon reservoirs at Junin-6 and Carabobo-2. 

The Venezuelan leader expressed his gratitude to President Putin «for the solidarity and personal friendship that you have had with President Chavez» who «always showed great respect and love for Russia». «We have inherited this love from him. We have come here to confirm our commitment to further strengthen and expand our strategic alliance with Russia.» According to Maduro, Venezuela and Russia «have good progress in the energy sector, oil, gas, oil-and-gas equipment manufacturing industries. Our cooperation in the military sector is also progressing at a good pace. Relations in the financial sector, agriculture, culture and education are also developing. We have 14 areas to develop and 63 topics to work on», Nicolás Maduro summed up. During the course of the meeting, the president of Venezuela repeated several times that he was satisfied with his trip to Moscow and the opportunity to «continue to move forward along the track set by President Chavez». «Russia can rely on Venezuela», Maduro declared and thanked the Russian leader for naming one of Moscow’s streets after Hugo Chavez. «It is going to be a very important moment for us».

At the end of the talks, both sides signed several documents, including a cooperation agreement for the implementation of offshore projects between Rosneft and PDVSA, Venezuela’s state oil company, and an agreement on the construction of a thermal power plant in Venezuela in partnership with Inter Rao UES.

Vladimir Putin summed up the meeting: «We have had constructive talks and have discussed the key areas of our bilateral strategic cooperation. It was President Hugo Chavez, a strong and courageous man and a true great friend of Russia, who was at the origins of this close cooperation. We discussed our common desire to continue the strategic cooperation between our two countries in all areas and agreed to continue coordination of our work to develop the global gas market Venezuela is a key partner for Russia in Latin America».

And just several hours after his meeting with Vladimir Putin, the Venezuelan president began his next official visit – to Belarus…

If one trusts the recording, Mario Silva told Aramis Palacios about the competing groups in the Bolivarian camp, headed, according to him, by President Maduro and Diosdado Cabello, the chairman of the National Assembly. Cabello, who is supposedly involved in corruption to the tune of millions of dollars, wouldn't accept that Hugo Chavez appointed Nicolas Maduro as his successor and is trying to turn the tide in his own favor. Now Cabello is strengthening his positions in the army, the security agencies and the police. His immediate goal is to have someone personally loyal to him appointed to the post of Minister of Defense. To this end, rumors are being spread to discredit the current minister, Diego Molero, whom Hugo Chavez trusted implicitly. Silva also pointed out (again, if one accepts the recorded conversation as authentic) the «excessive» influence of the president's wife, Cilia Flores, on the character of the decisions made by the head of state. 

Modern technologies make it possible to compile such a «conversation» using fragments from the hundreds of interviews and shows which Mario Silva has hosted in the past. Over the course of many years he engaged in counterpropaganda on Venezuelan television and exposed covert operations of U.S. and Israeli intelligence agencies directed against Chavez and his government. He made a lot of enemies in the ranks of the Bolivarians as well, by identifying false allies, fifth columnists and corrupt officials. The journalist has survived several attempted attacks and has had to hire bodyguards, and recently even received a weapon from the military arsenal for self-defense. Silva has called the recording of the conversation with the Cuban «a forgery in which the Mossad is involved,» and said that the plan to «liquidate» his television program The Razorblade (La Hojilla) «was nearly flawless» and led to his losing his job on the state television channel. 

Some analysts connect the dismissal of Mario Silva from his job on the television channel with a change in domestic policy which is being implemented gradually by the Maduro administration. This process of «building bridges» and establishing dialogue with opponents seems forced, but possibly Chavez's successor has no other choice. The policy of relaxing tense relationships and looking for potential partners in the camp of those who not long ago were seen as opponents looks like a political necessity. The alternative to dialogue is destabilization. In the past few days the President held meetings with the owners of the television channels Venevision, Televen and Globovision. Hugo Chavez considered the latter, a «24-hour news channel», to be «the most dangerous political party» in Venezuela. Just before these meetings, Maduro practically repeated the words of Chavez: «These channels represent an enormous communicative force. And in the past they used this force to organize a coup d’état. They must not be underestimated. I will speak with their owners with extreme frankness.» 

The president's initiative has noticeably influenced the channels' communications policy. Globovision has abandoned the usual confrontational tone of its programs. Objective coverage of events and inviting supporters of the Bolivarian regime to participate in programs are changes which everyone has noticed. The channel has noticeably reduced the amount of airtime devoted to Henrique Capriles. Capriles' declaration that he does not recognize Maduro as president, his calls to oppose the regime and his feverish activity in making contacts with extremist elements in the U.S. and Columbia in order to involve them in operations on the territory of Venezuela all cause serious misgivings in more sober-minded opponents of Maduro. They understand that Capriles is prepared to plunge the country into civil war because of his unfulfilled presidential ambitions. 

Maduro held a series of meetings with entrepreneurs at which the serious issue of food production was discussed. Especially significant was his exchange of opinions with Lorenzo Mendoza, the chairman of the huge food company Polar, which produces a wide assortment of products, from maize flour and rice to ice cream and beer. According to Forbes magazine, 47-year-old Mendoza's fortune is worth over 4 billion dollars. Lorenzo began his career at Polar as a loader: at his father's insistence, he started at the bottom and worked his way up in order to better understand how the family business functions. Currently, around 40,000 people work at Mendoza's facilities, whose high level of social benefits act as a kind of «vaccine» against interest in Bolivarian ideas. 

Maduro invited ministers from the economic bloc to his meeting with Mendoza in order to plan specific issues for future consultations. The head of Polar later stated that his conversation with the president took place in «a very cordial atmosphere, and was open and free of politicization.» Maduro promised Mendoza that the government would help the enterprise produce more essential food products and brands of drinks familiar to Venezuelans. The very fact of the meeting of Maduro and Mendoza, whose ancestor was the first president of the independent Venezuela (Cristobal Mendoza, 1811-1812) is interesting in that Hugo Chavez did not rule out the possibility that in the future the entrepreneur could become a presidential candidate for the right wing. Similar examples already exist in Latin America. In Chile, the oligarch Piñera won the presidential election; in Panama, Martinelli won, and in Columbia, Santos. 

Maduro is concurrently taking steps to revitalize social policy. Almost every day there are announcements that the keys to new apartments have been given to tens and hundreds of families, although the construction of new residential buildings still remains a priority. The president gives great attention to the army. Very recently it was announced that the salaries of military personnel would be increased by 40%. 20,000 automobiles will be purchased abroad and distributed at discounted prices among officers. 

These government measures have noticeably toned down polemics with the opposition. President Maduro appraised the release of the conversation between Silva and Palacio as an attempted «political assassination of Diosdado Cabello»: «First they [the right wing forces in the country and abroad] want to destroy him morally, and then physically as well.» Meanwhile, the public prosecution has begun an investigation into the matter of the Silva-Palacio recording. Experts noted when listening to the recording that the person with whom Silva is speaking does not have a typical Cuban accent, and that during the conversation, which lasted over an hour, the telejournalist never coughed once, although this habit of his is well known to television viewers. The fact that the «recording» was released by Ismael Garcia, who until 2001 worked with Hugo Chavez but then changed sides and joined the opposition, also raises suspicion. Chavez called him a traitor, meaning that Garcia had always called himself a socialist and even was trained as a trade union official in Cuba. 

Today Garcia is on the front lines of the fight with the Bolivarian regime. He is well received at the American embassy and has visited the U.S. several times with groups of Venezuelan opposition members. According to Garcia, he has «other recordings, which are kept in a safe place,» which will be used by the opposition when the moment comes. President Maduro's policy of relaxing relationships with the opposition will meet with resistance from U.S. and Israeli agents, but in current conditions it is most likely the best tactic for the Bolivarian government.

When looking at this question caution against oversimplification and romanticization is needed. A case in point about this oversimplification and romanticization is that Paraguay’s President Fernando Luga was praised as a steward by the leftists, even though he had to politically work as a centrist. Linked to this, there is also an important question about what right-wing and left-wing really mean. Do governments, groups, and movements that call or consider themselves right-wing or left-wing really fit into such categories?

In this context, the terms «left» and «right» need to be operationalized before any discussion can move forward. For purposes of discussion, the «left» would best be operationalized or defined as a political position that advocates reform or, in its radical form, revolution. Its proponents describe it as a position aimed at reducing or ending social inequality whereas its critics view it as either utopian or destabilizing. On the other hand, the «right» would best be operationalized or defined as a conservative and reactionary political position. Its proponents describe it as traditional and a safeguard of stability whereas its critics and opponents say that it supports social hierarchies that maintain societal inequality.

Socio-politically, the terms «left» and «right» originate in the upheavals of the French Revolution. The French Estates-General of the Bourbon monarchy and its revolutionary predecessor, the French National Assembly, became divided between those groups that supported the Bourbon monarchy, clergy, and «old regime» and those groups that opposed them in favour of revolution and republicanism. The supporters of the «old regime» would sit to the right of the legislative president or speaker in the legislative chamber whereas those groups that supported change and a «new regime» would sit to the left. It is also important to note that the «right» emerged as a reaction to the formation of the calls for change from the «left».

A Plethora of «Lefts» in Latin America

It should be pointed out that contrary to the highly simplistic dualism portrayed by the US government and most leftists that the categorization of Latin America into «left» or «right» is overly simplistic. Thinks are actually not clear-cut. This means that the above operationalized definitions of «right» and «left» are essentially ideal-types.

The leftist governments and movements of Latin America are an eclectic bunch. Thinking of them all in terms of one-size-fits-all is naive and ignores the history and local circumstances/variables that have constructed and influenced each one. In short, each one has its own identity. At least at the grassroots level, they want local agency, relatively more inclusive societies, and a reduction of the influential role of Latin America’s comprador elite oligarchs.

Latin America’s comprador elites are the local representatives of the foreign corporations, governments, and interests that have exploited Latin America for centuries. These comprador elites can frankly be described as either the «House Negros» or racist upper class that have historically ruled Latin America and managed its wealth and resources for the changing centres of power in other parts of the world that have controlled the area. Today, the regional comprador elites are mostly aligned with the United States and prefer Miami or New York City to Caracas or Quito.

Latin American left-wing governments do not strictly operate to the «left». There is even a debate over whether the Cuban socialist project is genuinely reforming or if it will eventually follow the paths of capitalist restoration like China and Vietnam. The typology of Latin America described by the sociologist James Petras will help frame this as the most workable way to conceptualize the «left» in Latin America. Petras divides Latin America among «four competing blocs» or groups. These are: (1) the «radical left», which includes the smaller Marxist formations in Latin America and guerilla groups like the FARC and sectors of various movements like the Rural Landless Movement in Brazil that form a dispersed political bloc that rejects any type of concessions to neo-liberalism; (2) the «pragmatic left», which includes the governments of Cuba, Venezuela, and Bolivia and the majority of leftist intellectuals in Latin America; (3) the «pragmatic neo-liberals», which includes Argentina and Brazil; and (4) the «doctrinaire neo-liberal regimes», which includes Columbia and most of Central America.

The Petras typology helps clarify why the US government considers certain left-wing governments in Latin America as being correct or good and other left-wing governments in Latin America as being wrong or bad. This typology also does not consider the Argentina, Brazilian, and Uruguayan governments leftist. It sees these Latin American governments as neo-liberal regimes and supporters of big capital that pragmatically adopt certain populist policies and project leftist images.

The sociologist Stuart Hall’s theoretical work gives additional perspective to the Petras typology. Hall argued that due to the rise of Thatcherism in Britain, the «left» in Britain was forced to imitate the right to gain power and popularity and that the leftists lacked a proper political program. Tony Blair’s right-wing orientation within the British Labour Party is a case in point. What Hall says may be in reverse operation in Latin America where the «right» has either imitated the «left» or presented itself as centrist or oriented more leftwards. It can also be true of the «left» orienting itself rightwards.

Moreover, one of the threats to the leftist movements in Latin America is corruption and co-optation. Bureaucracy in this regards can be a threat. For example, some supporters of Venezuela became uneasy around 2005. People like the Italian documentary maker Gabriel Muzio, who was praised in Caracas for his earlier work on Venezuela and then condemned as a falsifier for his later work (which the Venezuelan government itself funded), changed their positions on Venezuela. They complained that they saw the idea of popular power being upset by a concentration of power by the country’s bureaucracy.

Leftist Masks

It should be clear that all leftists are not really leftists. For example, the Chilean Socialists are committed to neo-liberal economics. Although Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto’s Institutional Revolutionary Party is called a socialist party, it is doubtful that Mexico will dramatically change its politics and policies aside from cosmetic changes. Even in Venezuela questionable business deals are made with foreign companies, like the selling of the Deltana Platform to Chevron-Texaco. Moreover, if leftists are protecting the status quo in their respective societies then they are actually right-wing under the operationalized definition of «right» that was outlined earlier.

Groups and individuals that have actually present themselves as socialists or communists have been major supports of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). For example, before he even became Brazil’s president, the Marxist sociologist Fernando Henrique Cardoso was appointed as finance minister by President Itamar Franco with the IMF becoming Cardoso’s most enthusiastic supporters after it had three different Brazilian finance ministers consecutively fired. Cardoso pushed for neo-liberal de-regulation and the privatization of Brazil’s public sector. Like many other revolutionaries a lot of the Marxist guerillas of Brazil who fought against the military junta in their country have put away their fatigues and copies of Das Kapital for IMF and World Bank economic manuals. This is why union boss Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of the Brazilian Workers Party was renounced as traitor and a lackey of the IMF and World Bank by the workers of the Occupied Factories Movement of Brazil after he became president. President Dilma Rousseff, Lula’s successor and a former Marxist guerilla, is continuing his policies. This is why there are those that pessimistically say that you never know what to expect when you vote for the leftists in Latin America.

Capitalist or Socialist Autonomy?

The emergence of left-wing governments has been a manifestation of the decades of local struggle and change in the lower political levels of Latin American societies. Before it started to reflect itself at the national level, the leftward trend began at the level of the municipalities. It has also is progressing in phases. Even the Bolivarian Movement has gone through phases where it has progressively radicalized.

Are domestic or local capitals being served by socialist projects or is there common interest? It can be argued that the political current in Latin America is mostly a question of financial and economic independence, rather than a socialist project challenging the capitalist world-system. This means that the trend is about empowering and supporting local capital. The situation for domestic capital has actually improved and expanded in the societies of Latin America’s leftist countries, from Brazil to Venezuela. Even Garcia Linera, the vice-president of Bolivia, has viewed the leftist trend in his country in terms of a state-run project for local capitalist development.

Politically and sociologically, the question of intentions is also important here when evaluating this. Populism and regional autonomy are advocated by both socialist movements and local capital alike. It is in the context of regional autonomy that foreign policy independence is a key feature of the «pink tide» and its «altermunialistas». Generally, what appears to exist regionally is an alliance of interests between local capital and social movements that have additionally turned to the international capitalist rivals of Wall Street to oppose the United States in Latin America.
 

The race was running smoothly, no glitches on the way. All the forecasts were predicting an easy victory for Maduro. The situation had started to abruptly change just before the voting. Some even started to say Capriles had a chance. The microblogging sites of Nicolas Maduro, the United Socialist Party of Venezuela and a number of Bolivarian leaders were infiltrated by hackers. They made public the plans of chavistas to rig the election results. The massive hacker attacks appeared to be well planned by high class experts to create disorder in the run-up to the polling day. Even before the race started, Capriles had said he would not recognize the election results, because the regime exercised total control of the country. He shied away from signing the corresponding CNE document that other presidential hopefuls put their signatures on. 

As expected, the Capriles election staff took advantage of the fact it was a narrow win. Along with announcements the election results were rigged, the social networks started to disseminate calls for resisting the chavistas attempts to steal the victory: «Maduro has lost!» The Maduro’s team condemned it and said it was irresponsible behavior, «The opposition candidate should not incite confrontation, while the situation is tense enough!» Jorge Rodrigues, the head of the national campaign for Maduro, told the opposition not to go crazy. According to him, the completely automated voting system used in Venezuela is recognized throughout the whole world as safe, reliable, transparent and 100% auditable. 

Maduro constantly received the real time information on voting in different parts of the country, especially in the privileged districts of the capital. He called for peace and said he respected the will of those, who voted for Capriles. Maduro had no objections to the recount of votes announced by the Election Council. He said, «Let 100 percent of the ballot boxes be opened. … We're going to do it; we have no fear». He supported the demand of the opposition and officially appealed to the Election Council with a request to conduct the recount of votes. 

A «cacerolazo» is a form of popular protest practiced in certain Spanish-speaking countries which consists in a group of people creating noise by banging pots, pans, and other utensils in order to call for attention. It had not been heard for a number of years, but this time it came back in some districts of Caracas. The barricades made of tires were set on fire. The faces distorted by hatred hit the TV screens again. The voices were raised calling once more for bringing law and order to the country, getting it rid of «Cuban agents» in the palace of Miraflores and weeding out Cuban military from the ranks of the armed forces. The war of rumors got a new impetus. 

Does the Maduro’s victory on April 14 guarantee the continuation of Hugo Chavez’s policies aimed at further progress of Bolivarian revolution? Maduro and his supporters exclude anything else. This course is fundamental… Any strategic compromises with the opposition are out of question. Opposing radicals strive to grasp the whole power and do away with all the social and political achievements of Hugo Chavez. Capriles and his team perceive his heritage as an attempt to impose a Cuban model disguised as the XXI century socialism. That is something the opposition flatly refuses, while Maduro follows Chavez focusing on the socialism with a Venezuelan face He stands for free competition between all political forces, but rejects the neo-liberal model as the way for the domination of the country by transnational companies. 

It all goes to show the opposition has plans to test Maduro and see how tough he is. Is he able to stand up to the pressure of mighty hostile internal and external forces? The Maduro’s opponents have the means and the will to exert it. 80% of media is under opposition control. Regular brainwashing leads to paradox, No matter how significant were the achievements of Chavez related to social welfare: health, housing, employment pensions and benefit payments boosting the prosperity of Venezuelan families, off and on it is all taken for granted, as a thing to exist under any conditions. Neo-iberal Capriles is temporarily donning a left-centrist disguise. He says people will live better if he comes to power. He will make the right decisions on oil profits and will stop giving it as a gift to the allies of Chavez. That is something many Venezuelans believe in. As a result the ruling party candidate has lost a million votes in comparison with the election on October 7, 2012. 

Many believe Capriles will put an end to inflation, crime and corruption once and for all. Somehow it is forgotten that the Bolivarians inherited a lot of problems from the Fourth Republic, ruled by those who are staging protests now. The reports of some Russian TV reporters evoke surprise as they show multiple pictures of decrepit houses on the mountains slopes around Caracas as a proof of the Bolivarian government’s ineptness. 

It should be noted that Chavez and his supporters had to overcome the tough resistance of traditional political elite and oligarchs, brave the attempt to stage a coup d’йtat in April 2002 and fight the drawn-out plot to disrupt oil production. It was only in 2004-2005 the Bolivarian government could launch social and political reforms in rather calm conditions. Actually, the achievements of Chavez and his team are the results of just a few years of arduous work. Suffice it to mention that hundreds of thousands of common people have been provided with comfortable housing. 

No matter what, the Chavistas have won and there is a reason for festivities. Squibs go up in the air and fireworks lit up the night sky. Nicolas Maduro is receiving victory congratulations. The heads of Latina American and Caribbean states did it first. The head of Russian Federation joined expressing the hope that Venezuela will go on cementing strategic ties with Russia under Nicolas Maduro. President Putin expressed his confidence that «under Mr. Maduro’s leadership Venezuela will continue to strengthen its strategic partnership with Russia, and confirmed his readiness to advance the constructive dialogue on all bilateral and international issues in the interests of both countries and peoples».

No doubt, that is the way it is going to be. In two and a half months Maduro will go to Moscow to join the summit of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF). Certainly, while meeting each other personally, the presidents of the two countries will not limit their agenda by gas and global energy problems…

Extremists and paramilitary groups penetrate into Venezuela from Columbia, Honduras and Guatemala. The Venezuelan government takes all the measures to prevent subversive activities. It is especially concerned about the terrorists sent from Salvador to kill Nicolas Maduro. He is aware of the threat and has already made known the name of the person who stands behind the plot – Armando Briquet, the Capriles' campaign manager, who has close ties to right-wing extremists in Salvador. 

Mauricio Funes, the President of Salvador, has taken seriously the Maduro’s warning; he promised a thorough investigation and noted these kind of terrorist acts have already taken place in the country. For instance, there has been an assassination attempt against Fidel Castro, there are Salvadorans put behind bars in Cuba for being involved in raids against Havana hotels. In July 2010 the Salvadoran called Chavez Abarca was arrested in Venezuelan Maiquetia airport carrying the passport of a Guatemalan citizen. He came to organize the assassination of then President Hugo Chavez. Nestor Reverol, Venezuela’s Minister for Justice and Internal Affairs, has just handed over to media a recording of tapped phone conversation between Salvadorans David Koch Arana, a retired Colonel with special operations experience, and lawmaker Roberto D'Aubuisson, one of leading figures of ARENA ultra-right political party. They talked about how to disrupt the election in Venezuela by committing a string of subversive acts. Two suspects have just been detained on the territory of Maracay, the home base of the 42nd Airborne Brigade. One was in civilian clothes; the other wore the uniform of Lieutenant. Supposedly, they were there on intelligence gathering mission to pinpoint the location of arms and explosives storages. After the arrest they tried to give a bribe to the military. 

Maduro has warned his supporters that there have been attempts to commit subversive actions, for instance cutting off electricity lines and substations, providing electricity to large cities. The lights went off in Caracas recently for a long time and they plan to do it in other places of the country. Maduro said if it happened the national Bolivarian armed forces and the people should hit the streets to resist the plans for destabilization and defend the revolution of the XXI century. According to him, Capriles is in despair, he realizes he’s got no chance to win. Maduro said he would hold a decisive victory and the 10 million votes to be received will be a present for Comandante Chavez. 

The Venezuelan authorities toughened the control over airports and seaways; the border with Columbia is closed for five days. The «Plan Republic» is in force to provide safety for constituencies, oil pipelines and refineries, communications and energy supply routes…

Dozens of thousands of military will be stationed across the national territory till April 15. The checks are taking take place everywhere. 22 electricity lines have been damaged in the state of Bolivar during an inspection. Fire safety measures are stepped up. Arsons took place at the last election. No doubt, it was done on purpose. They mainly set fire in the area of the Avila Mountains between Caracas and the sea shore to make people feel anxious and unprotected. 

The Maduro team is vigorous and united while taking concerted actions, 3-4 meetings are held daily in different states. Thousands of people fill main squares and streets of cities to see Maduro. The Bolivarian candidate is met with genuine enthusiasm – his program is the continuation of the course implemented by Chavez. Social issues are a priority: further rising of living standards, providing working places and modern housing, progress of healthcare and education. Maduro never stops to remind what will happen if the opponents win. There will be no social payments, steady jobs, social missions, people markets (Mercal), affordable housing. He says he will be there to defend the legacy of Chavez. 

The days till the election are numbered. On April 9 Maduro made one of most significant announcements. He said the wages will be increased up to 45% from May to November. The hike will be implemented in three phases. He had discussed the option with cabinet members, it is feasible, and the state has the means. A few hours later, Capriles made a «counter promise». He said he would raise the wages for all Venezuelans right on April 15 without any phases in case he is victorious. At the same time the opposition candidate invigorated the attacks against the National Electoral Council (CNE). He said it was a part of the ruling the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV). Capriles lambasted the closure of Columbian border. It looks like there is no reason to be against. There will be calm during the election, especially in the Western states, with the routes to get inside the country’s territory reliably cut off for Columbian criminals, who cause high criminal rates in the states of Zulia. Mйrida Tбchira. At that, Capriles is dissatisfied. The supposition that it was not Salvadoran terrorists only, who Armando Briquet has hired, but Columbian mercenaries as well, appears to be justified. 

While addressing the voters, Maduro often remembers the last months of Chavez being alive, the long conversations they held together. Once in Havana they talked for six hours. Chavez shared his vision of the country’s future. He warned Maduro that there would be no bed of roses ahead, everything could happen to him, and so Maduro had to be ready. It was exactly then, when he named Maduro as his successor. They talked about how difficult the world situation was and defined the strategic foreign policy goals, including: strengthening the integration process in Latin America and the Caribbean, the consolidation of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA), the alliance with Cuba, using oil for boosting Venezuela’s geopolitical clout. China, Brazil and Russia, the key BRICS members posing a counterweight to the US hegemony, are to remain the Venezuela’s privileged partners. It was the substance of the Chavez’s policy and it fills the agenda of Nicolas Maduro today. 

Maduro promises he won’t let Comandante Chavez down. He says, «All Venezuelans work for the benefit of homeland. The time has come to join the efforts together. The great man, Chavez, left the world, but he continues to bless and defend us. I admit missing the Comandante so much – as a leader and a teacher. And I will be faithful to the oath I gave him»…

There was no bloodshed this time. Accompanied by a policeman, Vollmer approached the invaders to make precise what they wanted. As a result they were allowed to live on the territory of estate. There were houses built to accommodate the destitute, medical service was provided to all of them and a school constructed for their children. This experiment has become a unique case, an experience to be studied by economic think tanks of Latin America. The charismatic Vollmer, a German by origin, who appears to be loyal to the Bolivarian regime, has hit the lists of neo-liberal World Global leaders. 

Vollmer was too independent to become a candidate. So those, who pull strings behind the curtains, have pushed him far aside giving way to docile Henrique Capriles Radonsky, 40, a scion of a rich Jewish family. The family owns industrial enterprises, media outlets, and the lion’s share of entertainment business. His right-wing views are to large extent explained by his descent and the ties of his family to business partners in the United States and Israel… Back in school years Henrique joined the TFP (Tradition, Family, Property), a right-wing organization fighting Marxism and the Theology of Liberation and maintaining close ties to para-military extremists. Its leader, Alejandro Peсa Esclusa, had enormous influence on Henrique. He fully supported the Esclusa calls for violence against enemies. But Venezuela banned the organization in 1984 for being involved in the assassination attempt against John Paul II. The first thing Henrique did was to hide away the TFP flag he went to demonstrations with. 

Upon getting a University degree, Capriles went into politics and became a Member of Parliament in 1998. In 2000 he was involved in creation of Primero Justicia, Justice First Movement (Movimiento Primero Justicia), a centre-right political party in Venezuela funded from the CIA funds. Since the very first days of its foundation, the Party was viewed as an instrument to fight Chavez policies. Heading the capital district of Baruta, Capriles led the witch hunt for Bolivarian government supporters and organized an attack against the Cuban embassy. Meeting German Sanchez, the Cuban ambassador, he demanded to provide access to each and every corner of the embassy building to make sure no top level chavistas found a refuge inside. Sanchez resolutely refused the ultimatum and warned the embassy staff was ready to offer resistance with all possible means at disposal. Capriles didn’t dare to storm, but the embassy was besieged, cut off from electricity, water, sewage, all cars with diplomatic vehicle registration plates were damaged. Capriles served a several months jail sentence for the crimes. 

In July-October 2012 Capriles led the opposition at the presidential election. Chavez had grave health problems at the time having gone through several surgeries, chemical and radiotherapy. But he managed to bounce back and defeat the opponent leading with 55% of the votes against 44% for Capriles. Many Venezuelan political scholars think his grave illness was a conspiracy cancer caused by his enemies to disable him before the October election. It was supposed that Capriles had a good chance to win facing any other Bolivarian candidate for victory. 

Venezuela journalist Ivana Cardinale is sure that Israeli intelligence was involved. The President sent away the ambassador of Israel and publicly cursed the Israeli state for killing hundreds of Lebanese. The strengthening of the relations between Venezuela and Palestine was perceived as unacceptable for Israel. It was viewed as a dangerous precedent to be followed by other Latin American states. The nationalization of gold and diamonds that previously had been under the control of Israeli entrepreneurs, evoked angry reaction on the part of Tel Aviv. Cardinale points out that Mossad and the CIA have many years’ experience of operations in Venezuela; they incite state coups, destabilize the country, and provide funds for opposition, anti-government journalists and protests staged by students. She says Capriles is a Jew pretending to be a Catholic and is a candidate supported by Mossad. According to her, Mossad agents acted as his guards at the last election. 

Cardinale remembered the incident when a synagogue was ransacked in Caracas in 2009. Armed men broke into the building last week and daubed slogans including «Jews get out» on the walls before destroying religious objects. Rabbi's Personal Bodyguard and a group of policemen were involved. Cardinale admitted the possibility the policemen were paid to make Chavez supporters be blamed. She wondered if the attacks against synagogues in Caracas would continue to imitate anti-Jewish actions or Shimon Peres himself would later admit the Israeli involvement and confess Israel killed Chavez the same way Arafat had been murdered before. 

It should be noted that Mossad agents had held top key positions in the structure of Venezuelan secret police before Chavez. Some of them left the country after the Chavez’s inauguration in February 1999; others resorted to the art of mimicry and continued their subversive activities. The investigation is on to prevent other cases of Bolivarian leaders falling prey to unexpected illnesses. 

According to Hinterlaces poll conducted on April 4, there is Capriles has no chance to win the presidential election, if it were not for some «emergency factor». Oscar Schemel, head of Hinterlaces polling agency, said Nicolas Maduro has won ideological debates, because his allegiance to chavism gives him an advantage. 10 days to the election, slated for April 14, the polls give Maduro a 20% lead. According to Shemel, the absence of Chavez causes emotional instability among the chavistas ranks. Grass roots feel they are vulnerable having lost the leader who defended them, returned them their rights and made main participants of life mainstream so that they could realize they were citizens again. But it does not drive them to the wall but rather radicalizes chavism as a political movement. 

Having heard the news Capriles has intent to pull out of the fray in view of unavoidable defeat, Nicolas Maduro is calling on his opponent to continue the fight. According to Bolivarian media, Capriles had bought a $5 million apartment in Manhattan, New York. This kind of information disorients the opposition voters. Capriles has lost at least 5% of votes recently. But what is the most important thing – he is facing many clandestine opponents, especially in the ranks of traditional bourgeois parties – the Democratic Action (AD) and the Christian Democratic Party (COPEI). They are undermining his efforts. 

No matter what, the defining factor before the April 14 election is the mobilization resource of United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV). The information coming from the cities Nicolas Maduro stopped in testifies to the fact that Hugo Chavez is able to win the battle for socialism, progress and people’s prosperity even after the death. In all the corners of the country people say «Chavez told us to win and we will do it at any price!»