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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsThe "ridiculous" failed coup attempt in Venezuela, explained
https://www.vox.com/2020/5/11/21249203/venezuela-coup-jordan-goudreau-maduro-guaido-explain<snip>
Last September, a group of former Venezuelan troops who had fled to neighboring Colombia trained and prepared for a daring mission: to oust Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro with the false hope of US government assistance.
The plan, to be executed two months later in November, consisted of two parts for the roughly 300 men. One team would take over Maracaibo, Venezuelas second-largest city, which has a crucial seaport. A second team would simultaneously push to Caracas, the capital, to launch an air assault on Maduros mansion with US helicopters flown by American pilots wearing Venezuelan military garb.
Once inside the compound, the ex-soldiers, armed with US-provided machine guns and night-vision goggles, would capture Maduro and hold him until help from the Maracaibo team arrived. By that point, the hope was that many of Maduros forces would join the rebel cause and stand down without a fight.
With Maracaibo and the seat of Venezuelan power secured, American helicopters would transport Maduro to the US, where he is wanted on drug trafficking charges. Juan Guaidó, the US-backed Venezuelan opposition leader who nearly 18 months ago launched a global movement to become the countrys new president, would finally take over.
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The "ridiculous" failed coup attempt in Venezuela, explained (Original Post)
malaise
May 2020
OP
Lol...just re-watched an old American Experience episode last night about T.R. invading Venezuela
pecosbob
May 2020
#6
The cheesy coup - the involvement of Roen Kraft and trust-fund friends
muriel_volestrangler
May 2020
#9
rampartc
(5,429 posts)1. these cia tools are usually make 1 big mistake
by overestimating the enthusiasm of the populace for capitalist exploitation.
Loki Liesmith
(4,602 posts)2. Lol But they're just dying to have Maduro exploit them
rampartc
(5,429 posts)3. everything i know about maduro is ftom people who want to overthrow him
and there are plenty of americans who seem enthusiastic about trump, many who would gladly acclaim him "president for life."
It is comical watching attempted coups from someone who is subverting the US constitution and using the terms freedom and democracy. Not one US backed coup was for either freedom or democracy. It was for the perpetuation of US interests.
pecosbob
(7,542 posts)6. Lol...just re-watched an old American Experience episode last night about T.R. invading Venezuela
to ensure their payment of foreign debt.
Bernardo de La Paz
(49,027 posts)5. Now tRump has his own Bay of Pigs. . . . nt
malaise
(269,107 posts)7. A friend described it as
piglets
muriel_volestrangler
(101,339 posts)9. The cheesy coup - the involvement of Roen Kraft and trust-fund friends
Its unclear where Alcalá and Goudreau got their backing, and whatever money was collected for the initiative appears to have been meager. One person who allegedly promised support was Roen Kraft, an eccentric descendant of the cheese-making family who along with former Trump bodyguard Schiller was among those meeting with opposition envoys in Miami and Washington.
At some point, Kraft started raising money among his own circle of fellow trust-fund friends for what he described as a private coup to be carried out by Silvercorp, according to two businessmen whom he asked for money.
Kraft allegedly lured prospective donors with the promise of preferential access to negotiate deals in the energy and mining sectors with an eventual Guaidó government, said one of the businessmen. He provided AP a two-page, unsigned draft memorandum for a six-figure commitment he said was sent by Kraft in October in which he represents himself as the prime contractor of Venezuela.
...
In a phone interview with AP, Kraft acknowledged meeting with Goudreau three times last year. But he said the two never did any business together and only discussed the delivery of humanitarian aid for Venezuela. He said Goudreau broke off all communications with him on Oct. 14, when it seemed he was intent on a military action.
https://apnews.com/79346b4e428676424c0e5669c80fc310
At some point, Kraft started raising money among his own circle of fellow trust-fund friends for what he described as a private coup to be carried out by Silvercorp, according to two businessmen whom he asked for money.
Kraft allegedly lured prospective donors with the promise of preferential access to negotiate deals in the energy and mining sectors with an eventual Guaidó government, said one of the businessmen. He provided AP a two-page, unsigned draft memorandum for a six-figure commitment he said was sent by Kraft in October in which he represents himself as the prime contractor of Venezuela.
...
In a phone interview with AP, Kraft acknowledged meeting with Goudreau three times last year. But he said the two never did any business together and only discussed the delivery of humanitarian aid for Venezuela. He said Goudreau broke off all communications with him on Oct. 14, when it seemed he was intent on a military action.
https://apnews.com/79346b4e428676424c0e5669c80fc310
Where on earth could a rich white guy who inherited a fortune get the idea he could take over a country for profit, eh?
On edit: shit, that AP story is from a few days before the men on the boats were caught. They appear to have been the disbanded would-be coup force:
In the aftermath of Alcalás arrest, the would-be insurrection appears to have disbanded. As the coronavirus spreads, several of the remaining combatants have fled the camps and fanned out across Colombia, reconnecting with loved ones and figuring out their next steps. Most are broke, facing investigation by Colombian police and frustrated with Goudreau, whom they blame for leading them astray.
No wonder the Venezuelans knew all about it - they just had to read the international news.
malaise
(269,107 posts)10. Very interesting
Thanks
Renew Deal
(81,866 posts)11. Is it illegal to launch a coup from US soil?
Shouldnt Goudreau be locked up despite the US position in Venezuela?
whistler162
(11,155 posts)12. Filibusters without the success