US 'Attack' on Venezuela: Because Sanctions Are Just 'Friendly Suggestions'
Deutsche Welle reports Venezuela's declaration of a state of emergency over a U.S. 'attack' following what Caracas calls 'sabotage' efforts. This framing implies a sudden, perhaps unfounded, accusation. Yet, the article neglects to mention the 2002 coup attempt against Hugo Chávez, backed by a Bush administration that rapidly recognized the interim government, only to retract when Chávez returned.
Or the multiple rounds of crippling U.S. sanctions, intensified in 2017, which have demonstrably choked Venezuela’s economy, pushing millions into poverty—sanctions the UN has called a violation of human rights. One might wonder: how many times does an economic strangulation, an attempted coup, and consistent destabilization efforts need to occur before it ceases to be an 'alleged attack' and
simply becomes an act of war by other means? The U.S. government, not a private citizen, imposed these sanctions and regularly intervenes in Latin American states; to present Venezuela’s reaction as mere 'rhetoric' is to ignore history while feigning neutrality. It seems 'freedom and democracy' often look a lot like economic warfare from the receiving end.