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Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro says he is open to the possibility of the United States some day opening a military base in the South American country and added that Brazil was concerned about Russia’s ties to Venezuela. "Depending on what might happen in the world, who knows if we might have to talk about a U.S. base in the future," the 63-year-old far-right president, who assumed office on January 1, told SBT television in an interview. Bolsonaro, who said he is a fan of President Donald Trump, said he supports U.S. policy with regard to opposing the "authoritarian regimes" of...

Conventional wisdom among the media and politician branches of the Democratic Party holds that President Trump and the Republicans will pay a serious price for the very partial (25%) “government shutdown” as it drags on. The passage of House budget bill with not even one dollar, as Speaker Pelosi averred, is supposed to increase pressure on President Trump in their view. They seem to believe that the public so loves visiting national parks in the middle of the winter – one of the few aspects of the 25% of the federal government that affects ordinary voters – that Republicans...

"What the United States fears the most is taking casualties," said Rear Admiral Lou Yuan...Lou’s comments reflect a growing belief in China that the United States has lost its stomach for war,...The Chinese believe that "Americans have gone soft...at the first sign of genuine trouble they will cut and run,"

SAO PAULO/BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazil’s new President Jair Bolsonaro said on Thursday that he would be open to the possibility of the United States operating a military base on his country’s soil, a move that would form a sharp shift in direction for Brazilian foreign policy. Bolsonaro, who took power on Tuesday, said that Russia’s support of President Nicolas Maduro’s “dictatorship” in neighboring Venezuela had significantly ramped up tensions in the region and was a worrying development. Asked by the SBT TV network in an interview taped on Thursday if that meant he would allow U.S. military presence in Brazil,...

**SNIP** Venezuela is ‘an ice cube’ The end result of the country’s decline, in terms of society, has been extreme poverty and hunger. In 2017, the average Venezuelan citizen lost around 24 pounds in 2017, about 73 people were murdered a day. And the rule of law is also breaking down: According to the country’s Prosecutor General’s office, 98% of crimes in 2014 were not prosecuted. Hyperinflation and the introduction of President Nicolas Maduro’s unique cryptocurrency has made the bolivar essentially worthless. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) noted that three million Venezuelans have sought refuge, hoping to find a...

President Jair Bolsonaro said in his address to the nation on Tuesday that Latin America’s most populous country has now been "liberated from socialism and political correctness". He promised to combat the "ideology of gender" teaching in schools, "respect our Judeo-Christian tradition" and "prepare children for the job market, not political militancy". Notable foreign leaders attending the inauguration include Hungary's hardline Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Israel's hawkish premier Benjamin Netanyahu, who has hailed a budding "brotherhood" with Brazil's new leader. Leftist Presidents Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela, Daniel Ortega of Nicaragua and Miguel Díaz-Canel of Cuba, deemed dictators by Bolsonaro,...

The Kremlin is not only spying on, but trying to influence American servicemembers. Russia is going to great lengths to undermine the US military by not just spying on it, but trying to influence its members, according to a report from Politico. Operatives have been friending soldiers and veterans on social media, posting on popular sites and, of course, hacking members. The aim, according to experts, is to turn service members into a "fifth column" for Russia, and the military is struggling to stop it. One technique used by Russia is to befriend soldiers, veterans and their spouses on social...

Luxury yacht owners have been warned of a surge in piracy in the southern Caribbean, as Venezuela's economic collapse spurs its penniless fishermen into banditry. According to a new global survey of global maritime security, 71 piracy incidents took place in the region last year, compared to just 21 the year before.

RUSSIA has sent supersonic bombers capable of carrying nuclear missiles to one of Venezuela’s islands in the Caribbean Sea, according to reports. This follows news earlier in the month that the former-Soviet state was planning to set up its first military base in the Caribbean after striking a deal with cash-strapped Venezuela. Venezuela’s socialist president Nicolas Maduro did not object to the proposals, according to Russian newspaper Nezavisimaya Gazeta. The deployment will represent the one of the largest postings of the Russian military in the region since the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. Under Venezuelan law, military bases cannot be...

What's a French leader without a rich, buttery serving of appeasement? Here's a France24 headline: "Macron raises minimum wage to appease Yellow Vest protesters." That's what he's offering, following the big buildup for his national address following at least two weekends of populist riots across the country. Oh, there's a bit of economic tinkering on other things – a tax hike taken back here, a tax hike delay there, a request that companies (instead of the government) pay workers more cash via bonuses with a tax sweetener in it for them – but raising the minimum wage seems to be...

We already learned that Russia was sending bombers to Venezuela for military exercises and supporting the country’s imploding economy. What could Vladimir Putin have wanted in exchange? We’re probably seeing the answer come into focus as Russia moves in to “help” Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro as we head into the new year. Putin is going to bail out Maduro’s failing government with some cash in exchange for establishing some measure of control over that nation’s vast crude oil reserves that are currently lying mostly dormant. (WaPo) As allies go, Venezuela is a relatively cheap one for Russia. But the potential...

As allies go, Venezuela is a relatively cheap one for Russia. But the potential returns on Moscow’s investment there could be priceless. In exchange for modest loans and bailouts over the past decade, Russia now owns significant parts of at least five oil fields in Venezuela, which holds the world’s largest reserves, along with 30 years’ worth of future output from two Caribbean natural-gas fields. Venezuela also has signed over 49.9 percent of Citgo, its wholly owned company in the United States — including three Gulf Coast refineries and a countrywide web of pipelines — as collateral to Russia’s state-owned...

The Venezuelan Navy illegally entered the waters of Guyana this weekend and forced a ship contracted by Exxon Mobil to conduct oil research in the area to vacate, The incident, which Guyanese authorities angrily denounced and vowed to bring to the attention of the United Nations, reignites a feud Venezuelan socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro began with the neighboring country in 2015, claiming as much as two-thirds of Guyana itself belonged to Venezuela. Guyana has repeatedly noted that Venezuela signed an agreement in 1899 on the territory in question and no disputes remain as to who owns that land. Exxon Mobil...

Fox News reports a harrowing scene in South America as a black market for women's hair, sex, and even breast milk crops up in Columbia as neighboring Venezuelan citizens desperately try to make any money they can while trying to survive a nation ravaged by the evils of socialism. According to Fox News' Hollie McKay, "[t]housands upon thousands of Venezuelans pour into Colombia over the crowd cross-country bridge, their faces gaunt, carrying little more than a backpack. Rail-thin women cradle their tiny babies, and beg along the trash-strewn gutters. Teens hawk everything from cigarettes to sweets and water for small change." Men...

Thousands upon thousands of Venezuelans pour into Colombia over the crowd cross-country bridge, their faces gaunt, carrying little more than a backpack. Rail-thin women cradle their tiny babies, and beg along the trash-strewn gutters. Teens hawk everything from cigarettes to sweets and water for small change. The young, the old and the disabled cluster around the lone Western Union office – recently established to deal with the Venezuelan influx – in the hopes of receiving or sending a few dollars to send home. Without passports or work permits, the Venezuelans – many with university degrees or decent jobs in what...

Nicaraguan authorities have raided the offices of a critical television station and shut it down, a week after raiding the offices of non-governmental groups and a newspaper. Lucia Pineda, press director for the 100% Noticias station, sent WhatsApp messages to other journalists saying that station director Miguel Mora was detained during the Friday night raid. Backers of President Daniel Ortega had filed criminal complaints accusing Mora of generating hate and during a wave of anti-government protests that broke out in April. Pineda also said police were taking away control equipment from the station, which went off the air. Other journalists...

"There are some who say that communism is the wave of the future. Let them come to Berlin!" That was June 1963 in West Berlin where President John F. Kennedy gave one of his most memorable addresses. The speech was a stirring defense of liberty and a pointed critique of communism. Whether you agree with Kennedy broadly or narrowly, I've rediscovered that speech and find it to relate now more than ever to the unfolding drama in the country of my birth, Venezuela. My family and I left Venezuela when I was 10. We had every intention of returning. Then...

Five investment firms holding $380 million of one of Venezuela’s bonds demanded payment of both the principal and unpaid interest on Monday. This could be the trigger that unleashes an avalanche of claims by more than 40 creditors holding $150 billion of Venezuela’s debt. The Marxist regimes that have controlled Venezuela for the last 20 years have finally run out of other people’s money, and now those other people want it back. Up until Venezuela failed to make an interest payment on its outstanding bonds, patience was the strategy for the bondholders. After all, Maduro had paid back Goldman Sachs’...

In an article about Venezuela soaring past the million-percent inflation rate (usually, when you get to about 1,000 percent, or 70,000 percent, you pretty well know you have a problem), longtime Chavista apologist and leftwing economist Mark Weisbrot has called on the regime to adopt what's generally known as a currency board. Here's the quote: Nevertheless, Venezuela could still get rid of hyperinflation by trying to establish an exchange-rate-based stabilization program (ERBS), meaning that the bolivar is fixed to the U.S. dollar at a sustainable exchange rate, according to Washington, D.C.-based Center for Economic and Policy Research Co-Director Mark Weisbrot....

Qatar will leave the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries as of next month, its energy minister told media today, adding that the decision was part of a long-term strategy for growing its international presence on energy markets with a focus on gas. Qatar is the world’s largest exporter of liquefied natural gas, but it has Australia breathing down its neck as well as emerging competition from the United States and other, smaller, producers. “Qatar has decided to withdraw its membership from OPEC effective January 2019 and this decision was communicated to OPEC this morning,” Saad al-Kaabi said, as quoted by...