Nicolas Maduro being attacked from the sea
U.S. covert operation to land combat troops on the coast of Venezuela did not work out from the very beginning. The CIA station in Curacao took part in the development of the operation., traditionally covering the operational situation in Venezuela. 31 March, a passenger ship entered the territorial waters of Venezuela near the island of La Tortuga Resolute under the Portuguese flag. When the Venezuelan border boat Naiguáta approached Resolute, to make an inspection, the ship seemed to obey, but then, making an unexpected turn for the border guards, fell on the boat with all its weight. Within minutes, the boat sank.. Resolute turned around and headed for Curacao, not even trying to help the Venezuelan sailors. By a lucky coincidence, none of them died..
The ship's captain Resolute, arriving at the port of Willemstad, did not allow representatives of the authorities of Curacao on board under the pretext of the risk of infection with coronavirus. However, under cover of night, Christian Olsen boarded the ship., political adviser to the US Consulate General, and two of his colleagues. We had to discuss, how to get out of an annoying situation, not to light up the presence of dozens of militants in the cabins and a ton of weapons in the holds.
Immediately after the incident off the island of La Tortuga, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro issued a statement: "On board are 160 human, access to which [island authorities] forbidden. That is, in Curacao there is [other] sovereignty, which prevents the government of this country from knowing, who is hiding inside the ship, to find out, who are these 160 human, and to identify them. President stressed, what “This strange situation only confirms the hypothesis that, that the ship was used to deliver mercenaries [to the Venezuelan border], which were then transferred to the coast on speedboats, to carry out surprise attacks on military and political targets". Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino also noted, that any references to a tourist destination Resolute not true, because due to the pandemic, the tourist season in the region did not open. And the President, and the Minister of Defense clearly had more complete information about the tasks and goals, placed in front of the militants.
A version was thrown into the circulation of the pro-American media that, that the Venezuelan border guards behaved “hostilely” and even fired small arms, to "force" Resolute enter Venezuelan territorial waters. Zita Jesus-Leito, Minister of Transport and Spatial Planning of Curaçao, verified CIA residency "link", in an interview with a local newspaper willingly confirmed, that no one is on board, except for thirty team members. US Consul General Allen Greenberg gave Jesus-Leito this information., and she them, of course, believed. Is it worth it to offend the consul with distrust? Moreover, Jesus-Leito and Greenberg recently signed a document on the transfer to the Americans of a large plot of land in Willemstad for the construction of a new US consulate building.. As Greenberg stated, "This acquisition marks another successful step in the ongoing partnership between the two countries and demonstrates the US government's long-term commitment to the security and prosperity of Curaçao and the entire Caribbean". Touching concern for the security of Curacao is a constant leitmotif of the declarations of US officials, including Donald Gabrielson, Commander of the US Fourth Fleet.
The authorities of Curacao decided, that you should not inflate the story with mercenaries on board Resolute. Even if they are hiding somewhere in the holds, it makes no sense to inconvenience an omnipotent partner. Greenberg is an experienced diplomat, able to defuse the situation, no wonder he gained experience in Russia, Poland, in Cuba. The main thing is not to disturb him. US Consular Team in Curaçao – Christian Olsen, Derek Kolb, Chris Wolf, Kevin Coates and others - "serves" Aruba, Bonaire and several other island states. There are virtually no pure American diplomats in Willemstad, all intelligence officers. The work of evacuating mercenaries from Resolute they passed without complications.
An attempt at another "sea" attack by US intelligence agencies against Venezuela was carried out 3 May. This joint CIA adventure, the military intelligence of the DIA and the drug control department also shamefully failed, showing the inability of its organizers to really assess the facts and calculate the steps. apparently, anti-Bolivarian propaganda in decision-making centers in Washington is perceived as the ultimate truth, hence the inability to soberly assess the situation in Venezuela.
For twenty years now, the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela has been subjected to a powerful economic, financial, political, US energy and other pressure. In Latin America, only Cuba experiences the same hatred of US imperialism.. Venezuela has a worthy example of resisting the onslaught of the United States. Hugo Chavez admired Cubans' resilience, the same will to uncompromising struggle is shown by Nicolas Maduro, doing everything to strengthen the patriotic military-civil union in the country.
The determination of the Bolivarian leadership to repulse a potential aggressor haunts the United States. The Pentagon periodically organizes exercises near the Venezuelan borders under the pretext of fighting the mythical Venezuelan drug cartels.. US intelligence agencies conduct probing checks of the combat capability of the Venezuelan army and structures, ensuring state security. In recent years alone, the Americans have tried to realize such a sounding by attacking the Paramakai fort in 2017 year, provocations of the Oscar Perez terrorist group in 2018 year, assassination attempt on Maduro using drone bombs in the same year. The most recent activities of this kind are in 2019 mutiny by a small group of military 30 April and the attack on Fort Santa Elena in Bolivar State in December. That's not counting the regular harassing shootouts on the Colombian border..
conceived on a grand scale, the most recent operation "Gideon" began 3 May. They tried to transfer several groups of mercenaries from camps in the Colombian department of Guajira to the territory of Venezuela by sea. There they were instructed., mentors were Americans from a private security company Silvercop, established in 2018 year in Florida. formal leader Silvercop is Jordan Goudreau, U.S. Army Special Forces Veteran, veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, awarded the Bronze Star for heroism. From the very beginning, the company acted as a cover for special operations against the "Maduro regime". The invasion groups consisted mainly of deserters from the Venezuelan security forces, with a total strength of 200-250 human.
A few days before the landing, the curator of the "Venezuelan project" Elliot Abrams issued a statement, what "transition in Venezuela [to democracy] as close as ever» and predicted the imminent opening of the American embassy in Caracas. The day before the start of Operation Gideon, hundreds of posts appeared on social media about, what “the next night will bring many joyful surprises to the Venezuelans”.
None of these landing groups were successful.. Part was neutralized in the process of disembarkation by local police and fishermen. Others were destroyed by army special forces.
Heads Silvercop Goudreau had to take responsibility for the devastating failure of Operation Gideon.. President Nicolas Maduro, commenting on the defeat of the mercenaries, couldn't resist the irony: "They played Rambo. They pretended to be heroes". Really, this impression of the invasion remains after acquaintance with visual materials, captured by the Bolivarian intelligence services. Equipment, equipment - all according to the highest Hollywood standards. However, Goudreau did not accept defeat and declared, that the operation will continue in the interior of Venezuela, where his wards are already operating. Meanwhile, two of his Silvercop employees Airan Berry and Luke Denman are arrested by the Venezuelans., without resisting, and testify.
Along the way, Goudreau revealed the involvement in the adventure of the "interim president" Juan Guido, showing the journalist the appropriate agreement, signed by Guaidó, about cooperation with the company Silvercop in the fight against Maduro. serious document. What was it for?, will, apparently, known soon. obviously, The “Project Guaido” has completely fizzled out and the Americans hope to put an end to the “interim president” with the help of the Bolivarian authorities. The agreement is a forty-page document detailing the obligations of the parties to overthrow the legitimately elected president..
President Donald Trump and Pentagon chief Mark Esther said, that the US has nothing to do with these events in Venezuela. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was more verbose, denying Washington's involvement: “The US authorities were not directly involved in this operation.. If we were involved, then things would have been different.”. In fact, Pompeo admitted, that “indirectly” the American authorities knew everything about Operation Gideon. The first information about its failure, received on the basis of radio interception of conversations of the Venezuelan special services, reported to CIA headquarters her residency in Curacao.
The title photo: Miraflores Press/dpa/@The_Nation
Neil NIKANDROV
