U.S. VP Pence urges Latin American countries to isolate Venezuela

[webfact]

U.S. VP Pence urges Latin American countries to isolate Venezuela

By Alexandra Valencia

 

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence (L) shakes hands with Ecuador's President Lenin Moreno, in Quito, Ecuador June 28, 2018. REUTERS/Daniel Tapia

 

QUITO (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Mike Pence urged Latin American countries on Thursday to help isolate crisis-stricken Venezuela, an ideological adversary of Washington that is struggling under a severe and prolonged economic crisis.

 

Pence met with Ecuadorean President Lenin Moreno as part of a tour of Latin America that has included meetings with Venezuelans who left the socialist country because it is so difficult to obtain food or medicine.

 

"One specific threat to our collective security that is on (our minds) ... is the ongoing collapse of Venezuela into dictatorship, deprivation and despair," Pence said during a news conference with Moreno.

 

"We respectfully urge Ecuador and all of our allies across the region to take steps to further isolate the Maduro regime."

 

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro slammed Pence in response, accusing him of currying favor with conservative Latino voters in Florida.

 

"The sick and obsessive Mike Pence is going around Latin America, he's campaigning," Maduro said in a televised broadcast. "He has failed on this mini-tour of South America."

 

On Wednesday, Maduro called Pence a "poisonous viper" and vowed to defeat what he called Washington's attempts to force him from power.

 

Pence said the United States offered to provide $2 million in assistance to Ecuador to handle the growing influx of migrants from Venezuela, whose numbers are overwhelming social services agencies in countries all over Latin America.

 

Washington has already levied sanctions against Venezuela, including barring American citizens from working with a group of high-ranking Venezuelan officials and blocking U.S. investors from acquiring newly issued bonds.

 

Moreno stopped short of agreeing to isolate Caracas, instead urging involvement by the secretary-general of the United Nations.

 

"We believe that the solution for Venezuela can only be provided by Venezuelans," he said.

 

Moreno said Ecuador had taken in nearly 150,000 Venezuelan citizens and was concerned about the "humanitarian crisis" there.

 

The United Nations has estimated that close to 1 million Venezuelans left their country from 2015 to 2017, driven by hunger, joblessness and the rising incidence of preventable disease.

 

Maduro has said the country's situation is the result of an "economic war" being waged against it by opposition politicians with the help of Washington.

 

The OPEC country's oil production has dropped sharply. State oil company Petróleos de Venezuela S.A.'s (PDVSA) oil exports fell 32 percent in the first half of June compared with May.

 

Moreno also said that Ecuador was seeking to improve relations with the United States, which were tense during the decade-long government of Moreno's predecessor, Rafael Correa, a socialist ally of Maduro.

 

The two countries agreed to exchange information regarding drug trafficking and international organized crime, cooperation that Correa halted while in office.

 

(Reporting by Alexandra Valencia; Additional reporting by Deisy Buitrago in Caracas; Writing by Brian Ellsworth; Editing by Toni Reinhold and Peter Cooney)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-06-29

[keith101]

Why the hell should Latin America help them with this when the US is doing everything it can to keep them out of the US . Tell the Trumpies to take a flying jump off a cliff and look after there own affairs .

[Chomper Higgot]

"One specific threat to our collective security that is on (our minds) ... is the ongoing collapse of Venezuela into dictatorship, deprivation and despair," 

 

And he said that with a straight face.

[Boon Mee]

Venezuela is the poster child for failed Marxist Socialist policies and Pence is 100% correct to warn other countries to avoid going down that road. 

[bristolboy]

 

22 minutes ago, Boon Mee said:

Venezuela is the poster child for failed Marxist Socialist policies and Pence is 100% correct to warn other countries to avoid going down that road. 

Except that's not what Pence said at all. I guess you've gotten so used to "explaining" what Trump really means that now you're applying it to Pence as well.

[Baerboxer]

5 hours ago, keith101 said:

Why the hell should Latin America help them with this when the US is doing everything it can to keep them out of the US . Tell the Trumpies to take a flying jump off a cliff and look after there own affairs .

 

Maybe because the corrupt non democratic tyrant Maduro is their common enemy. <deleted> when parliament voted against him he simply created a new legislative packed with his cronies. and said it was now over parliament.

 

Venezuela are an oil producer and has the largest known oil reserves. The people should be enjoying the high standards of living such as Norwegians or Emiratis, based on that wealth. But the corrupt regime has impoverished them, kills and imprisons opponents while Maduro, his family and cronies are all very wealthy.

He keeps the backing of the military so he gets away with it.

[Baerboxer]

5 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

"One specific threat to our collective security that is on (our minds) ... is the ongoing collapse of Venezuela into dictatorship, deprivation and despair," 

 

And he said that with a straight face.

 

You think everything is just honky dory there then?

 

A true flagship for socialism. Clearly used Animal Farm as the role model with Maduro as Napoleon the pig!

[DoctorG]

Many socialists still hold Venezuela up as their preferred model.

[stevenl]

21 minutes ago, Baerboxer said:

 

Maybe because the corrupt non democratic tyrant Maduro is their common enemy. <deleted> when parliament voted against him he simply created a new legislative packed with his cronies. and said it was now over parliament.

 

Venezuela are an oil producer and has the largest known oil reserves. The people should be enjoying the high standards of living such as Norwegians or Emiratis, based on that wealth. But the corrupt regime has impoverished them, kills and imprisons opponents while Maduro, his family and cronies are all very wealthy.

He keeps the backing of the military so he gets away with it.

So why is he their common enemy?

[stevenl]

6 minutes ago, DoctorG said:

Many socialists still hold Venezuela up as their preferred model.

Please show us where.

[johnnybangkok]

So lets get this correct. N. Korea and Russia, both actual dictatorship are courted, feted, met with and fawned over but Venezuela is a 'dictatorship' that's  'One specific threat to our collective security....' 

The hypocrisy from the Trump administration knows no bounds.   

[wwest5829]

1 hour ago, Boon Mee said:

Venezuela is the poster child for failed Marxist Socialist policies and Pence is 100% correct to warn other countries to avoid going down that road. 

Unfortunately, as has been true in the past the USA has not offered nor demonstrated an alternative which fairly deals with the mass of population. The US, with its huge income/wealth gap clearly demonstrates the extreme of following its lead. That is exactly why, historically, the peoples have felt they have needed to turn elsewhere for help and leadership...

[Expatthailover]

What a messed up country that is when it should be so rich.

Got some nice resort areas and other tourist potential.

Trump will probably send his sniffer dogs in ( ivanka and jared ) to cherry pick the best bits. Make a deal with maduro and hey presto commissions for the kids and developments for don.

Horrible venal man

[swanny321]

3 hours ago, stevenl said:

So why is he their common enemy?

 

  Because, because, because..........................

[Sydebolle]

Maybe Pence and his cronies should consider the fact, that they are US citizen. Once that is understood they might furthermore consider to keep their huge mouth shut. 

US interference outside their own country is provenly disastrous and, provided Pence can read a map, not within his jurisdiction. Follow your boss' election thread of "America First"; Venezuela or any other country for that fact is NONE OF YOUR business. Pence might also look up September 11th, 1973 (not 2001, that was an US insider job as we all know) to understand, what I am talking about! 

[Morch]

22 hours ago, Boon Mee said:

Venezuela is the poster child for failed Marxist Socialist policies and Pence is 100% correct to warn other countries to avoid going down that road. 

 

Pence is pictured shaking the hand of Lenin (a clue right there) Moreno, of the PAIS Alliance party.

 

 

[Andaman Al]

On 6/29/2018 at 8:08 AM, webfact said:

"One specific threat to our collective security that is on (our minds) ... is the ongoing collapse of Venezuela the United States into dictatorship, deprivation and despair,"

 

This is a good one, all of 20 seconds on the printing press. This will solve a crisis 150 000 refugees then.

On 6/29/2018 at 8:08 AM, webfact said:

Pence said the United States offered to provide $2 million in assistance to Ecuador to handle the growing influx of migrants from Venezuela, whose numbers are overwhelming social services agencies in countries all over Latin America.

 

 

It is ironic that Trump spends all his time slating South American countries, telling Mexico they will build the wall, scrapping NAFTA, kidnapping children from South American parents trying for a better life in the USA and then he asks for their help in isolating Venezuela. I hope they all tell Trump and Pence to ram it.

[Opl]

" Trump Repeatedly Questioned Why the United States Couldn’t Simply Invade Venezuela" 

https://apnews.com/a3309c4990ac4581834d4a654f7746ef/Trump-pressed-aides-on-Venezuela-invasion,-US-official-says