Posted on 12/26/2018 6:42:09 PM PST by Kaslin
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 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 Rosneft oil behemoth for a reported $1.5 billion in desperately needed cash.
This is bad news for Venezuela and also an undesirable development for the United States. We’re currently in a battle with the Russians (among others) for dominance in the international oil and gas market. We’ve only recently gained the upper hand in that arena, but with Russia now owning half of Citgo and holding the banknotes on much of Venezuela’s proven crude oil reserves, that’s going to give them a serious leg up.
The reason this bodes ill for the people of Venezuela is equally obvious. The only way they’re going to rid themselves of their tyrant (absent some sort of external military intervention which is unlikely in the extreme) is if Maduro’s corrupt socialist kleptocracy collapses under its own weight. The dictator’s continued hold on power depends on his access to cash to keep all of his schemes funded and his militias on the payroll. If he can’t manage that, someone is likely to take him out sooner or later. Venezuela’s currency is currently worth absolutely nothing, so Maduro relies on gold and hard money from stable countries to remain in business.
This new infusion of billions of dollars from Russia, along with their military presence in the country cowing Maduro’s opposition, may be a deal with the devil but it will likely keep him in power for quite a while longer. And that means there will be no relief for his starving people and no chance to reestablish some form of functional government. Meanwhile, Putin clearly would rather have a tinpot socialist dictator who he can control in charge of Venezuela instead of any sort of more enlightened government.
Maduro brought this loss of control on himself by plundering Venezuela’s national oil company and effectively shutting down production. But his problems are producing a ripple effect which impacts everyone else. In some ways, Russia is currently winning a war in South America without firing a shot. And that’s definitely not good news for the west.
Poll: Russian nostalgia for Soviet Union reaches 13-year high
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/3715099/posts
Obama Doctrine supplants Monroe’s (”Speak Soft & Do Less” on Iran Missiles in Venezuela)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2919443/posts
IAEA report: Iran continuously worked to produce a nuclear bomb since 2003
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/bloggers/2804327/posts
I wonder if Russia is going to help Maduro the crook take over Guyana territory off shore for oil now.
This is actually good news. it puts more oil on the market lowering costs.
Allen West- Venezuelan Missiles Could Threaten South Florida
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/bloggers/2830150/posts
[Sad, that some people in south Florida like Iranian missiles. Must be the dope.]
The Emerging Axis of Iran and Venezuela - The prospect of Iranian missiles in South America
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2335999/posts
We missed an opportunity it seems.
Lou Dobbs has been lamenting recently that China and Russia are gaining a foothold in Central and South America, and we continue to fool around with W’s nation building nonsense in the ME.
We better get on the stick.
I bet Putin got it at bargan basement prices. Still a risk—if Modero falls—Russia could lose their investments. Its only a question of time before Venezuela falls into Revolt and revolution. Still, Cuba is still Communist—once the iron collar of Communism is locked on —its hard to remove.
If we would simply adopt Thorium energy, our worries about energy in terms of supply and cost would disappear.
Nothing against hydrocarbons but Thorium would give us a significant leg up.
Well put.
Putin will win this one.
Sean Penn just wasn’t enough.
“That is better than Venezuela controlling it.”
I agree. If we didn’t want Russia running around the world grabbing whatever they could, perhaps we should reconsider our treatment of them.
Not concerned, cold warriors — Russia will come nowhere close to monopolizing the market for oil. They will profit from the deal only by more efficiently extracting and selling more oil, which will hold-down the world price.
In April 2017, a controversial Venezuelan Supreme Court ruling granted Maduro executive powers over PDVSA, which allow him act autonomously in selling shares or make international agreements of the oil company.[58] In October 2017, Venezuela had its lowest oil output in 28 years, with only 1.863 million bpd being pumped that month.[59] By late-2017, the PDVSA struggled to repay $725 million of debt, part of a total $5 billion owed.[60][61].
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Venezuelan_oil_industry
There’s also the kalishnikov factories and advanced fighters.
Next: Maduro will hire both Ocassionally Cortex-Impaired and “Beto” Juice O’Rouke as his financial counselors. Tallahasse mayor Andrew Gillum was under consideration but he might be in jail soon so his selection would be embarrassing (as if they other two weren’t).
Looks like Putin is “Putin on the Economic Blitz” in Latin America. The man sure does like to “Rumbah”.
Thanks for the reminder. I remember the news about those Kalashnikov factories Russia started in Venezuela but didn’t see the news about the “advanced” fighters. I wonder if they’re as advanced as Russia’s nuclear powered missile. ;-)
The tiny propaganda item exhibited by the Russians in their fake news looked like the Iranian composite stage props: a little lumpy around the hulls. I don’t have one of those photos offhand, but here’s some related information.
U.S. Has Been Secretly Watching Russia’s Nuclear-Powered Cruise Missiles Crash and Burn
http://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/18948/u-s-has-been-secretly-watching-russias-nuclear-powered-cruise-missiles-crash-and-burn
Actually, BTW, western Europe picked up the radioactivity from a Russian test crash in the atmosphere first, because it was drifting over there.
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