Inside Venezuela After Maduro's Kidnapping — On-The-Ground Report | Silk and Steel

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Yo creo que se ha hecho con muchas personas que no se aporten.

Si no se aporten el gobierno, pero no se aporten este tipo de resolución.

Este tipo de desenvolvimiento.

Se ha agregado, y es en la caña de los pollos de los últimos meses.

Se ha agregado con las U.S.

Tienen que agregar la situación de la situación de la Venezuela.

Es algo que si hay una situación, se ha agregado.

Y eso es algo de que se prevene de eso.

De hecho, se ha agregado con las cosas que también se prevenen,

y es el proceso internal que puede ser.

Se ha agregado con el sistema de ausosciente y suelen a esta parte artificial,

cuando se entiende en una situación que se podrá ser muy popular.

The sometimes they weren't there.

It wasn't no big gap between engaging with people who actually have their politics

and on the opposition side.

Even crazy opposition level.

I mean, I still have people who I talk to.

And who weren't happy, by the way.

And actually could be even more scared in the chareza in this case of what could happen

after this.

Entonces, también, las experiencias recentes de las personas que, por cualquier momento,

han vuelto el país, han vuelto algo, porque esto también ha pasado, en algún momento,

fue muy alto por la media.

¿Cuáles son los reglas de Perú, por ejemplo?

Y luego empezaron a tener como el cinefólico de experiencia de estar ahí.

Y luego, la historia que fue offerada por los primeros presidentes,

showing un salario y entonces empezaron,

que es una cosa que se ha cambiado y que se ha cambiado por la misma manera.

Y a lo que se ha cambiado es que cuando se ha cambiado,

hay que ser posible que el U.S.,

yo creo que en el U.S., y luego se ha cambiado,

no sé, el chéis, porque es que el U.S.,

y que se ha cambiado por la agua,

y el que se ha cambiado por la gente.

Y se ha cambiado por la gente.

Estas cosas también tienen una gran diferencia de una experiencia

y lo que está haciendo.

Y estos son los otros que no están,

Ahora, el bello de la bista, se llama José Martí.

Y esto es el sentido de la fecha, también.

Así que, en el caso de lo que estoy diciendo aquí a este punto,

es que hay no a Givo, hay no a un resto, hay nada de eso.

Hay otras manifestaciones de la afuera, sí que hay, pero no a todos, en el caso de la bista.

Así que, parece que es casi la vida que se va a ir en la insaivencia de Venezuela

después de ese evento con no, yo creo que hay muchas discusiones, pero es...

¿Y usted dice que hay gente que va a ir a la vida normal?

Y para un punto de vista,

yo no sé,

la experiencia de ser bomba,

de course,

es un poco más tiempo

para encontrar una más

una idea de shaped,

para ser una forma sexual

o algo sobre la experiencia,

porque era astromatico.

Era aquí,

y yo tenía que ir a través de los bordes de ese tipo de Colombia.

Así que tenía una muy diferente experiencia de lo que ha pasado.

Y también, como alguien que ha sido born y rase aquí,

me parece como una sensación de no estar aquí, en ese sentido.

En el paro, en el paro, en el paro, en el paro,

en el nivel, a la sensación de lo que ha pasado aquí.

Y también he tenido lugares que hemos hecho militantes contra chavismo.

Yo creo que los municipales que nunca había tenido chavista mayor,

que hemos hecho, bueno, parte de la naturaleza.

No sé cuánto fatal de los víctimas que eran allí,

pero hay mucha propiedad de la infraestructura de la gente.

La casa está destruyendo, ¿no?

Entonces, no usamos esto,

y estoy tentando, ¿no?

Pueden hacer una panna de esto.

Porque yo no, we're used to pay a lot of other things,

but this experience,

regardless of how short it was,

also, it takes a bit more time.

And it's, it is in a way.

Just for my audience,

because you keep on referring to opposition party, et cetera,

for the people who have been maybe misled

by US propaganda.

Venezuela is not a dictatorship.

It's, in fact, a democracy that hold elections.

There are opposition parties.

It's not a one party state.

And, you know, of course,

US would dispute those elections,

but the election has been observed

by many countries around the world.

And speaking of which,

did you just see that Trump throw Machado under the bus

when he publicly said,

oh, I don't think she will be back to Venezuela

because she just doesn't have enough support back there.

I mean, Trump himself publicly admitted Machado

is just their puppet,

with no support,

with no support inside Venezuela whatsoever.

Yeah, and I don't know if you also saw,

well, she went to the White House today.

And, I mean, she basically went to the,

through the kitchen door or something,

I mean, she didn't have any protocol.

And she actually,

she didn't have enough to say when she came out,

because you know, part of the,

of this study was going to be,

she was going to give her noble medal to him.

And I think she did,

but there's no significant reaction after this.

So it's even more, you know, it is,

it is that low point where we're talking about

that actually exposes to the core,

the nature of that kind of quote unquote leadership

and the origins and the ontology even, you know,

of this kind of characters.

And yeah, and also it is important,

yes, for people to understand

that not only there's opposition,

but the most extreme is faction of the opposition,

the most pro-US,

there's legal opposition as well.

And yeah, it's true I'm being emphatic about that.

I mean, like going in, you know,

almost an autopilot stressing that part,

because I really care for, for people to understand this.

And I'm, and regarding, yeah,

and also casting medical in a much

out of different light,

and not the one that has been overblown

and hyped by the Western media.

I even today, Carl, I had an interview

which it was, yeah,

was the English version of a Middle Eastern network,

a big one, asking me,

the whole much out of thing wasn't like,

felt like massive betrayal of the Venezuelan

democratic causing Venezuela,

something like that, and we'll come on.

I mean, no, it doesn't,

that's only something that's happening outside Venezuela.

That's something that the gap,

the narrative gap, it's massive, you know,

and it's different.

Yeah.

Did you also see that Trump conference

with the US oil majors?

The, he was talking,

Trump was talking to the US oil major executives,

as if he already owns a Venezuelan oil,

and he's discussing how to divide up the spoils.

And interestingly, all the oil executive is telling him,

okay, no, no, no,

we actually have to invest a lot of money

into Venezuela to make the, you know,

to get the enough return on investment that we would like.

You know, we would much better invest

that money somewhere else in Guyana or Canada,

but the thing is that the whole Trump premise

that is that, oh, we gotta get our hands

on the Venezuelan oil, not China,

but it's because of the US sanction that Venezuelan

are only 10% of Venezuelan oil goes to United States.

And that's what the Chevrolet executives

trying to tell him.

It's like, this is because the US sanction does happen.

So sometimes I don't even know if Trump really understand

how the oil business works,

because it seems like he's running the,

running the show pure on instinct.

I mean, he's a man that runs on instinct,

but maybe not too much knowledge.

Well, you know, it was, yeah, if you follow the clips,

it was like a constant blooper

in how they were actually ruining the substance

of the world, it just said several truth social posts

before that moment.

And funny enough, yeah, there were different reactions.

And also that also happened with Harry Burton.

I mean, at some point they say, well, thank you for this

and we trust your team and so on.

And when we left Venezuela in 2019,

and he asked, why did you leave?

Is it because of sanctions?

You know, I mean, just in front of him.

And also it is a world by itself,

because if you saw Exxon,

well, it was a very much different reaction to others,

because basically what Exxon did subtext,

what Exxon was saying or complaining about,

and saying it was uninvestable,

because they used that word,

was precisely that the framework and the legal system

and the law hasn't changed.

So basically, they're basically complaining about

this hasn't gone full regime change.

And I know that, I mean, you have to,

I'm more than sure, it's not a gut feeling thing.

I mean, Exxon has a big role behind all of this.

If you follow the money,

and if you follow the sponsorship of what's,

have been pushing for all of this,

starting with Marco Rogo himself,

you know, and how much Exxon has poured

in his whatever pack system he has,

and funds and whatever.

So it's funny because, yeah,

you have those nuances there,

but the overall picture is we cannot do

the thing that you're saying we have to do.

And how reality, Trump's Trump, you know,

in the sense of, this is what happens when,

yeah, some real, energy realism comes into play,

even by companies that are militant, in that sense.

And not only that, I mean, as far as I know,

as far as I've been following the conversations

regarding, and the agreements and how the framework

will be for the companies now, the US companies now,

it's not different from the one that Biden

already had with Chevin.

And this is important.

So there's no major development there either.

There's no direct control over resources

like he's trying to say,

and he's doing what he's able to do outside

of Venezuela one more time.

Regardless of other things,

I'll comment that further, further on,

but to the point, but it shows something else,

a very smart and close friend of mine was saying,

there is no plan.

There's no actual plan.

I'm not saying that they're operating on a vacuum.

I'm not saying that maybe there's like a Frankenstein,

you know, build up a lot of inputs from different plants

and different things that are playing,

sacrificing some chips like Maracolini

and my child herself, which is a Marco Rubio asset,

and doing this and there,

so there's no coherent plan.

Or they're gaslighting us into what the actual plan is.

I don't know if, I mean, time will tell

which one is actually the most accurate one.

They're mostly the ones that reach at the closest

because there was today, for example,

a piece by CNN saying that Trump was engaging

with private military companies

and the whole private, you know,

PMC system, which also includes

guarding infrastructure and even reconstruction

and so, and how interesting they were in Venezuela.

But I mean, this is also operating from my boy

in the sense of like there's,

like they're actually in control of the fields

and so on, which is not happening either.

And it's like, I guess it's a way to accelerate

the way to guarantee to this big oil hot shots

to actually getting to Venezuela once and for all.

Or it is only the gasification,

the gas apatodime of war, just coming over, you know,

because this was a component that wasn't as visible

as the AI, the screening, the surveillance,

the target banks, the use of electronic warfare

during that early morning of the third,

everything was already there.

This was the part that was missing of that gas scheme

that has been created after genocide

and has been tested there and has been became

some sort of war package, you know, maybe that's it.

And this is just, you know, allowing Trump

to be the car bumper that's gonna just deflect

all the attention of deeper trends in larger fights

that are going on.

So at this moment, it's not difficult

because of the amount of use cases,

thinking about to finish that point.

The hardest, the post, the furthest is from control,

it seems, for example, they want to self polish himself

like with a Wikipedia entry saying,

Venezuela's acting president.

Yeah, I mean, like, it's amazing.

They already talk as if Venezuela already capitulated,

you know, they already act as if they already

own Venezuela and the Venezuelan oil field

when it's far from that.

And base my understanding of base my talk

with other experts.

Trump is a man who, you know, who he acts out of instinct.

Not, I don't think he has a long-term plan.

When you say, it doesn't look like they have a plan,

I don't think they do.

But Trump likes those big, you know, like the Photoshop moments

where he can pronounce victory.

This is this goes to, you know, this is how he concluded

that while they were against Iran,

when he did a glancing blow against a Iranian nuclear facility

and then he declared victory.

He declared himself peacemaker

and it's the same with kidnapping of Venezuela Maduro

because it's flashy, it grabs the headline.

This allows Trump to gather the spotlight,

declare himself the victor.

And as you say, it's also a distraction,

distraction from a very real problem of Epstein files.

Because even a lot of people among his magas supporters

are demanding the government to release Epstein files.

This level of distraction by going on a war path,

you know, distracts the country from domestic problems,

which U.S. faces a lot, you know,

we have the Epstein file hanging over Trump

and then we have the problem of ICE, you know,

basically not only brutalizing immigrants,

but also American citizens right now

that just shot a white woman, you know.

And so the country, United States

is really divided at this point.

And a lot of the people, it must be stressed.

Survey after survey, majority of American public

do not support Venezuelan intervention.

But, you know, Washington, you leave it,

it's totally different because they're not responsible,

they're not out accountable

to what the American public actually want.

And they don't care.

And for, exactly.

And for Trump, this is all about himself.

He's gathering personal glory.

He's looking for legacy.

He's looking to build legacy

as the great American president.

He probably won another head of in carbon month rush more.

You know, and this is his attempt

to build personal legacy.

So I don't think he's worried about, you know,

U.S. companies spending $186 billion

investment over a period of 16 years in Venezuela.

That is far beyond what he's scope.

You know, he will be out of office

for a long time before that happens.

So I don't think he cares about that.

You know, he doesn't care about a so-called U.S.

national interest, whatever it does, maybe.

And he is doing this for himself.

And his morality, I mean, he said it was that interview,

I mean, that's enough, my morality is like the limit

of what's going to happen, I mean.

Yeah, yeah, that's why we're in a kind of this weird mess

right now where it looks like America

just, you know, flexing military muscles everywhere,

not just in Venezuela, but also, you know,

against Iran, now against NATO,

a NATO country, Denmark over Greenland.

Because this is all Trump's personal project.

But having said that, I think the whole Venezuelan operation

also fed into presidential ambition of Marco Rubio.

Let's face this, this is Latin America.

So this is called Latin, U.S. project in Latin America

is Marco Rubio's baby.

And he definitely has presidential aspirations.

I think he's, this is part of him.

He sees that as a step in store.

All politics is domestic politics.

And I think this is how U.S. is projecting

its own domestic problems upon the global world.

But what about Venezuela?

What about, you know, currently I know the acting president

of Venezuela has already publicly rejected, you know,

a denonced Trump in no uncertain terms.

So do you think, is there, is there, you know,

that this is why the oil majors have been complaining.

There's no reaching change.

And, and so right now, the, is that you're reading as well?

I mean, because I know there's a lot of conspiracy theories

floating around about, oh, maybe a secret deal was made,

or maybe even Maduro gives himself voluntarily

in order to avoid a, a, a escalation of what's your take on that.

Yeah, you know, I think that we still have to wait

for some things to answer themselves to a point I mean

that it's going to be more closer to definitive, you know?

And regarding many of those question marks,

even in my, everybody has, you know, some details

will, will be nice to see a, a, a further explanation or the,

you know, some, some gaps that don't, that are, well,

it brings up question marks, I suppose.

But, but you know, coming from here, I know this kind of things

also, it's usually the case and we'll have some responses.

And it's probably with receipts.

And usually they take your time to do the research

and usually release it when there's no, nothing ongoing.

That's has, that's usually the way.

So yeah, it's anti-climatic in the sense of media expectancy,

you know, and it is, and it, of course, it could allow

many kinds of, many sorts of speculation regarding how this

actually happened and why.

But, beyond that point, because I think, yeah,

I might be agree with some, and maybe with some others,

I just don't, up to this point, what we have,

it's presented, yeah, there's no actual rating change.

It was a kidnapping, something unprecedented,

as unprecedented as the scenario that has been unfolding

ever since this started.

And also,

also the way that, even to that short moment,

there wasn't something, I don't know, I don't know,

I mean, I wonder myself, how much they actually planned

the fact that we're going to deal not with the president,

but the vice president nevertheless,

and the whole system, which is basically intact,

it is under extortion, I might say, blackmail,

at this moment, of course, there's a lot of strong army

as you have seen, and it's quite unfisted,

and actually, it has created shockwaves

that has already had many reactions, unexpected reactions

outside of the usual regarding Venezuela.

For example, some Western countries like Spain, for example,

condemning openly, or Germany, Germany's president,

Francois de Stainmeyer, saying it was an act of barbarity,

it was a barbaric move by a barbaric empire,

something like that, I mean, I'm paraphrasing,

but even to that extent, it has brought a lot of shockwaves.

And so far, at this point, I mean, the way it has all this

been organized, it was done according to Venezuela's law,

and the Venezuelan system operating at that moment of,

yeah, of something that's completely new to its history,

so it's new also to its legal framework,

but it was also, to some extent, already contemplated

on part of its constitution.

And this is the way the Supreme Court,

the Supreme Judicial Power decided rules,

according to the interpretation of the constitution,

and set up the legal framework for what comes next,

which is precisely the vice president assuming,

in this case, acknowledging that the president

was basically kidnapped.

But this is a person who's actually responsible

for stabilizing the country, who's actually responsible

for implementing medical as maluros, plans,

sanctioned by him, planned by him.

And she's also pretty much a person

that hasn't given any big significant concession

all this time, like to suggest something weird there,

and I actually ruled it out.

This is also a person whose family was,

well, basically, fractured during the 70s,

her father was Jorge Rodriguez,

who was a left wing political leader,

a very charismatic one.

I wonder why actually he moved a lot of people,

he was important, he was basically tortured to death

by the government back then.

So she also has that in her family experience.

So it's not that easy, also, I mean,

it's also people because they don't know her that well,

also, not think, for example, that she's being a woman,

she's not tough enough for this kind of situation,

and boy, they can be wrong about that as well.

And we're seeing, and we're seeing precisely how,

this is a situation that has been managed,

step by step, in a way that it has been also telling,

I mean, about keeping up the basic tenets at all levels

of what actually means and gives substance

to the body of violent revolution.

And at the same time, maneuvering with this kind of cycle,

with a gun, we have actually threatening all of us,

at the same time.

I actually, if I was thinking before we joined the show

about how we are seeing like two different constant uda

loops going on at this moment, for different reasons, of course.

One maneuvering in the scenario that it has been,

it was analyzed, and based on a plan,

there was already reading and design discussed

by Nikolás Maduro himself.

This is something that has been addressed by his son,

who was a member of parliament, and also the vice president.

So this was actually thought through before it could happen

as one of the possible scenarios in which something

could happen, because the threads were serious

enough in that sense.

So here we are now precisely in this kind of uncharted waters

in which every step it's, I mean, it's new in that sense,

you know, how it's been managed.

It has included a lot of threads again.

You don't have to thread the people that you are,

they're actually working for you in cooperating

and being loyal to you, regardless of the flashy moments

on the phone calls and so on.

This is still political, and this also has a lot of political

theater in the sense that you have to manage what there is,

that you have to manage the characters you're facing.

The psychology has a massive place here

if you're actually placing Trump among, among other, among,

you know, precisely him.

So it's interesting, and it's a very complex process

that we're actually engaging right now.

And it's still, I think, a struggle for survival.

And now it's a national thing.

It's not important that it's exclusive

of one political affiliation.

Speaking of national survival,

US is still maintaining a naval blockade in Israel,

basically chasing down and seizing oil tankers

as coming to Venezuela to picking up the oil.

This is an economic warfare.

They are trying to strangulate the Venezuela economy,

which is very much depend on oil export.

Has that, is still over effect right now

on everyday living situation inside Venezuela,

the current oil embargo?

Yeah, well, to what I've seen, I mean, nothing to be far

beyond of the usual.

You have two elements to take into account here.

If December, it's like the last time we talk,

it's like the holiday moment and happiness and spending

and what not, January's hangover month here.

You know, in a very economic sense as well.

It's a slow month, a reposition of goods takes longer,

prices adjust, and we still have the issue

about the currency vis a vis the dollar,

which is, by the way, central to what's going on

on the big picture, regarding precisely the urgency

to preserve some sort of quote unquote value

to the petro dollar, the hard way, of course.

So only on the level that it hasn't changed,

it hasn't intensified a bit regarding the price

of the currency vis a vis the dollar,

and therefore to buy goods and the markets,

and so on, and also dealing with which is a use

with the case in Venezuela and other sanctions

because it's with parallel markers that also try

to play with the actual figure of the dollar that day.

You know, that kind of speculative things, devices,

you can see when it happens in Nicaragua,

it happens in Nicaragua, it happens in Argentina.

I mean, this kind of outside of the legal framework,

pricing of the US currency for whatever reason.

I mean, it's insane.

So, but in that sense, what I'm trying to explain here

is that that's the only problem that has been constant.

But there's no hoarding of goods, there's no,

there's not a fuel crisis yet, at least.

You can talk about, I mean, there's no all.

There was, of course, a usual reaction,

the day it happened, and generally the third,

a lot of people went and do the lines on the gas stations

through the country, but that didn't,

that that happened for a day that I have maybe,

and then it stopped.

If there's no, we don't have that kind of shortage going on

at this moment.

So, basically, it is the same situation regarding,

yeah, the value of currency,

therefore the value of salary and power purchase.

But beyond that point, I mean, it shows something

that I think it's important to take into account

pre-sacium that economic aspect,

especially of being subject to many different shapes

and forms of blanket economic terrorism,

which is basically this proofs,

I mean, when this was bad five years ago,

with the overgraven use plugged into 99%,

it was really bad, and a lot of things were lacking.

And now, at this point, with precisely the,

within its limitations, diversification of economy,

doesn't seem to, the blow doesn't seem to be that hard,

than before.

So, this shows that some things really have improved

on that economic front in order to face this kind of scenario

in the last two to three years.

And I'm gonna say, and I'm gonna say,

it's not perfect, you know, or are the woods,

or rosy, it is uncomfortable and it's tough,

and you have to deal with a huge amount

of another economic tool, which is uncertainty.

Yeah, yeah, so right now, it looks like,

looks to me as an outside observer,

it looks like U.S. continued to,

through coercion and intimidation,

is trying to make Venezuelan government do what it wants,

to capitulate, and to let the U.S. oil major come back

and to own all the oil assets, like before,

like before the nationalization of Venezuelan oil assets.

So, just really, nothing has really,

like nothing fundamental has changed,

is just, Trump just upped the escalation,

you know, by kidnapping the president,

legal president from the country,

by imposing economic oil embargo,

and by actually bombing the Capitol.

Yeah, I wonder how sustainable this is,

for United States.

You know, this is actually, people don't realize,

U.S. itself also face resource constraint.

You know, they, to carry out such military operation,

it's quite expensive.

And, and, and one second.

Yeah, that's a worse.

I've been followed by myself, so don't worry.

I don't know what's going on.

I don't know what's going on.

But my, my son wants to go to the beach.

Tell him he has to wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait a minute.

Okay, Matthew, Matthew, okay, after Obama finished,

he's not taking no calls.

Sir, uh, one second, the one second.

Let me, let me send him to my wife, and then,

yes, just go ahead, man, no worries, no worries.

I, I feel you.

My wife promised to take my son to the beach,

and he just can't wait.

You see, the kids don't understand

the concept of future.

They wanted now.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, absolutely, absolutely.

I have a little one that also photobombs me,

even, even being, you know, and some, yeah,

life and some new show, and she just photobombs.

So, yeah, I know, I know what you're going through.

But that's good.

Okay, it's, the US resource comes straight, right?

Because the US empire, it's also does not have infinite resources

to carry out as you campaign of intimidation,

the military means in the Caribbean.

It's actually incredibly expensive.

Like, like, all these, to just keep,

all these US fleet stock with fuel,

like, they have these like logistic ships of oilers

that constantly traveling back and forth

to keep refueling US ships.

They're already working at bulk capacity,

because it's just not, you know, I don't think US military,

I mean, they can't sustain this for a while,

but you will be incredibly expensive.

And they also, it means they will have to put off

on their adventurism elsewhere, right?

Because now that we're, they're rumors saying

that US is moving to strike Iran.

And like, with what?

Because you know, all their military assets

in the Caribbean right now, you know,

it's going to take the month to just to redeploy.

Even if that's, you know, that's what they really want to do

if they want to go after Iran.

So we're going to have to just wait and see,

you know, how long this Trump craziness lasts.

You know, I'm one, one thing for people outside of Venezuela,

you know, they worry about, obviously,

is how long the New Zealand can hold out

under such an economic siege.

It's a big question, Mark, and also,

and it also depends, but even that is contradictory

to an extent, Carl, because for example,

in order to allow to make things flow, it seems,

you have to discharge several sanctions.

You have to lift part of the sanction regime

in order to make this viable, it seems.

So, I mean, that's blowback, man.

That's a new, weird manifestation of blowback.

And we're going to see others as weird as that one

as we go forward if things keep going

the way they're going in that sense,

because it's going into one contradiction

after the other one in order to make it make sense.

It's weird in that sense, and so,

and yeah, I don't like to say,

I don't enjoy saying that we've gone through this before,

all the economic hardship, because it is devastating,

and it's also frustrating if you have enough memory

to remember how we were you living before sanctions,

regardless of whatever there was going on.

But yeah, I mean, it is a concern,

but there's also proof now, up to this point,

that we're not at the same spot

that we were the first time in all of this hit home.

And I think that's important.

Lots of, most of now, of the food we actually eat,

it's actually been produced here.

It's not 100% sovereign, full sovereignty,

but it's far more than it was five years ago.

Same with other economic activities,

and same with even import export and so on.

So, and also, there's a lot of restructuring,

and now it's even restructuring further.

Now, that's taking place in all the legal framework,

precisely to adapt what already succeeded

in a different legal form.

So, I think there are more ways and more resources

to at least face that part,

the extreme part of the scarcity and austerity and so on,

and also keep into account,

but they're probably going to push harder against finishing

every kind of interaction and deals with Venezuela's allies,

who actually were the ones that supported Venezuela,

and proved that the sanction of regime

wasn't working any more as they wanted them to work.

And that's one of the reasons they attacked also,

and they had to precipitate everything the way they did.

But they're telling them to be expelled in Venezuela

has been quite adamant and also explicit the way they

said that that's not going to happen.

Some things, I guess, the old and old process

would be wider, and it will involve the ingenuity of others,

that are actually real friends of Venezuela,

and in which they have to,

which things will keep going in that direction.

And that's at least what Venezuela's were,

it's saying, Venezuela's a country,

Venezuela's government is stating publicly,

and she has won over more than one gesture

to the People's Republic of China,

the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Russian Federation,

all these days, including visits to ambassadors,

meetings with these ambassadors,

greeting them at the soaring celebration,

the moment that she was sworn into office.

The first three foreigners that were greeted by her,

personally, were precisely Iran, Russian, China.

So that message is also there.

I guess that's going to take different shape and force,

and this is something here that people also

need to understand regarding U.S. Venezuela relationships,

because back until 2020, 2013, maybe,

or somewhere around, U.S. was the biggest buyer still

of Venezuela and oil, back then.

And there was a lot of trade going on still, back then.

And it's actually sanctioned that it was actually

that expelled the U.S. company of two in business

in Venezuela, and on a very, on the Venezuela law.

But it has always been the government position,

since Chavez, now Maduro, and now they see Rodriguez

that we are always willing to engage on trade

and do business with the United States,

just like we do with any other country

that we decide we have to do.

Under the terms of Venezuela has to offer.

So that's not a cognitive dissonance,

and it has always been put the responsibility on them

regarding the state and the shape of U.S.

Venezuelan relationships.

And also, this is not a government level.

There are a whole different kind of discussions going on,

you know, on a more normal grassroots level

of many manifestations.

Not only did I ask for a, you know, economic circle,

we're talking about actually discussions go further.

There are now part of the discussion on the right, for example.

It goes beyond the spinning that we've seen.

So it is interesting.

It also shows how quick this kind of blowback happens

when you're closer to home, and you're not back in back that.

It takes a bit longer there to feel it.

You know, to feel the backlash in many ways,

or the sudden uncertainties in many ways as well,

as to the short-sightedness and the pettiness

of this kind of operations.

Yeah, that's good to hear.

And I think it's encouraged in that also the Venezuelan

relationship with its neighboring country

as you've been improving and talking about

like could be, for example.

And so, you know, US at least would not be able

to block the land route for, you know, Venezuelan borders

with other people in American countries.

Yeah, and so we're going to have to,

and you know, Trump right now is,

he's doing all this also, he's trying to stay out in jail,

you know, because he has a midterm election coming

in the United States.

And what he's trying to do is right now,

he's trying to ensure support from his MAGA base.

So there will be enough Republicans get elected

that will allow Trump not to be impeached.

And so this is why he's also of the, of the antics.

We're going to have to see how the US military

election shake out, you know, whether there will be

impeachment of Trump coming in.

Well, I would have you thought you saw the quote of him

basically saying that the, like I said,

another part of his stream of consciousness,

like saying, I think it was with the Times.

I don't know, I'll remember which out of it,

but basically saying it would be even better

to not have elections or something like that.

I mean, he's already saying that.

Oh, yeah, I mean, like they, they were,

they're already people like Steve Bannon

trying to flow trial booboons or like a possible

term, right?

Beyond 2028, which is crazy.

I mean, right now, I don't know how the country

was survive another three years of Trump

at the current rate.

It's, you know, we're just going to have to wait and see.

Yeah, and I think people, and for the people watching,

you know, like they should not be too easily

adopt a defeatist attitude, you know?

Venezuela has not been defeated yet.

You know, Venezuela has not insulated yet.

You know, the fight still goes on.

And, you know, US is not all powerful, right?

I mean, like, I know people feel helpless

that sometimes they feel used to get to do

whatever he wants, but US is not all powerful.

US do have its own limitations.

And, you know, and then what just have to,

the best we can do is keep our spirits up

and keep on, keep on, keep on, keep on the resistance

to the empire.

Yeah, resistance takes many forms, man.

And especially if you are on the weak side,

it takes even more different, a wider set of possibilities

and tools.

And, you know, it's funny enough, I'm going to quote

of all people that Taliban, when they said,

basically, yeah, you older watches, but we own time.

And this is a very short-term thing right now, you know?

And, yeah, I mean, this is not capitulation.

Yeah, we're not defeated.

And, like I've said, and if you've been paid enough attention

to Venezuela the last six years,

you're going to see the different shape and forms

that resistance actually had during those years.

And now I think, think about something, just for a moment.

Especially on a symbolic and narrative needy empire

at this moment, precisely to obfuscate from his,

it's on the climb.

They try to do a Roman show against Nicolas Maluro.

They try to show him Saddam's style, humiliated, destroyed,

and, you know, looking to the floor.

And he basically was just joking caracanus style

and saying, good night, good, you happy new year to the frisk

or even able to send us a message saying, you know,

he was in shock when he said, no, so don't say anything.

And he was also able to take a stand at the jury

that had many important reactions in, in court that day.

So, I mean, even that opportunity of trying to go further

with symbolic shock and all basically failed, you know?

They didn't, even that opportunity was squandered.

So, yeah, I mean, and also this massive displays of force

is also massive displays of desperation.

This is also important to understand.

Yeah, I'm actually gonna see if they publicize the trial

because, you know, they, we all know it's a kangaroo court

and the charges brought against Maluro is bogus.

But they already dropped the drug charges

because we know that that would never fly

because there's no fentanyl coming out of it as well.

You know, that, that was a completely made up charge.

And so, now the only charge that's standing against Maluro

is positioning on machine guns and positioning

of machine guns that pose danger to the United States person

now, which is completely ridiculous

because you are trying to prosecute him in a country

that has a second amendment rights.

Citizens, the right of citizens that to bear art.

You're a part of the community, Maluro,

for having weapons to defend himself.

And this is completely ridiculous.

I actually look forward to how they're gonna argue in court

and I hope we'll be a public televised trial.

Well, they actually, you know,

there's the indictment, it has like a seven conversion

after the attack and yeah, they severely tone down the narco

thing, there's no mention for fentanyl and this,

and same with the cartel de los soles,

which is basically what they were accusing him of.

I'll be running a drug cartel,

an narco state drug cartel or something.

And but they're gonna try using, it seems they're using

a star witness that has already been,

it's already clear, it's already been shown

that it has been coerced and also had to make

his own plea of deal in order to reduce his own sentence,

which is, oh, carabajal.

But this will like maxed pieces show by the way,

a very good piece by Max Blumont, sorry,

the greatest one, as it shows that this on the legal system

would imply discovery that's actually gonna point

at the CIA history of drug trafficking to say, you know,

so it's gonna be really complicated to do it.

And even for more, we can get even more colorful here.

We have this guy, the judge, who I'd remember,

I forgot his name, that basically it's a guy

that persuaded 9-11 victims not to go on trial

and to settle something because of what,

the risk of what's going to be exposed

at the honor trial, you know, so what, yeah, exactly.

So that would put a very, in a very bad place,

the US federal state.

So it's a good question, so this is a cover-up judge,

at least for 9-11 according to what I've seen.

And on the other side, by the way, you have,

there's like this, yeah, this is also like geopolitics

inside the courtroom because you have the very public,

I think it's his name, who was a scientist lawyer.

So that's also like, you know,

there's a lot of indirect symbolism

and messages going on here, what kind of fighting,

and a sense of even morality and decency operating here.

So that's going to be a nightmare.

It's a PR nightmare, if you see it,

unless they go tough on them, hardcore, I don't know.

Trying to do something that's going to work

in their benefit for the cameras,

for the performative elements of this,

regardless of the legal case itself.

So yeah, I mean, that's something

I mean, I'm looking also,

I'm also anxious to see how this is going to develop.

Yeah, we are all very anxious to see how you all play out.

And thank you again, Diego, for making your time

to join us, to tell us the facts on the ground

inside Venezuela.

Is there anything you like to,

is there anything else you like to cover

on this particular issue?

Yeah, I had an idea and I just lost it.

Basically, I mean, this is not,

this is far from over.

I think this is something people have to realize.

One more time, I think the La Roja Tribe has it right

when they say it's entering a new face, it is.

It is a new stage of geopolitical reality

throughout the world, you know,

and they have to keep that into account.

I completely forgot the other thing I was going to say.

But anyway, yeah, I was actually remembering,

reminded that I've been joking with the thing

and now for something completely different

according to the multi,

according to multipython,

the last two episodes.

So boy, man, I have, I foresee that we're going to have

something completely different the next time we're going to,

we're going to talk.

This is going fast, man.

Yeah.

Yeah.

So for people who want to follow you,

Diego, where would they go?

Well, first of all, the go-to places

missiónbetoad.com.

I think we have to write it down in the comments.

Truth mission in English would be like the rough translation

and the telegram channel there.

Then I have my personal Twitter handle,

Diego Secera, you can find me there as well.

And sometimes I'm running something here and there.

So I'll basically post it on social media

and the telegram channel of missiónbetoad.

So those are the go-to places.

Thank you.

Thank you, Diego, again.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Speak to us.

This is a very important development.

And it's still ongoing story, obviously.

Yes.

Absolutely.

I look forward to have you back on our show.

Sure, man.

To discuss any further development,

because this is, like I said,

this is still ongoing travel.

And we had right now the whole world's eyes

are now focused on Venezuela and the United States.

And hopefully next time we come together

for something completely different,

you'll be a nice surprise.

That would be great.

Yeah, I hope for good news.

Yeah.

Yeah, some pretty development, that's for sure.

I mean, that's the only thing I can guarantee.

What is it?

It's going to be a surprise.

It only got nose.

That's fair.

Well, thanks, guys, for tuning in.

Until next time.

Bye-bye.