Axios: Trump wants to talk to Maduro; Peace is more likely than war

According to Isna, US President Donald Trump has told his advisors that he plans to speak directly with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

Axios website published this News on Tuesday morning, citing several government officials.

Trump’s decision is an important milestone in his “gunship diplomacy” against Venezuela, US media wrote, and could be a sign that missile strikes or direct ground military action are not imminent.

“Right now, no one is planning to kill or kidnap Maduro,” said an official familiar with the content of the meetings. I’m not saying never, but it’s not in the cards right now. “Instead, we blow up boats carrying drugs and stop drug trafficking.”

So far, at least 83 people have been killed during the US military operation in the Caribbean Sea called “Operation Southern Spear” and in 21 separate attacks on boats that were said to be carrying drugs.

At the same time as announcing Trump’s interest in dialogue, the US State Department on Monday designated a drug cartel in Venezuela as a “foreign terrorist organization”. This action gives the US more legal pretext for military action in and around Venezuela.

On Monday, General Dan Kane, the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the US Armed Forces, visited Puerto Rico. where nearly 10,000 American ground, naval and pilot forces are stationed.

Axios writes that Operation Southern Spear was launched under the pretext of preventing drug trafficking, but unofficially, its goal is to change the regime in Caracas.

A White House official said: “We have a covert operation, but it is not aimed at killing Maduro; The goal is to stop drug trafficking. Of course, if Maduro leaves, we will not shed a single tear.”

The American media wrote that a date has not yet been set for the telephone conversation between Trump and Maduro and that this call is “in the planning stage”. No one can guess exactly what Trump will say or in what tone he will speak; The same famous cliché “all options are on the table” applies here.

During the first term of Trump’s presidency, the US Department of Justice accused Maduro of being the head of the cartel “Cartel de los Sols” (Cartel of the Suns). Maduro has denied the accusations and said the group is completely fictitious.

Axios further wrote: Critics of Trump’s Venezuela policy have repeatedly tried to blame the military campaign on Marco Rubio, the Secretary of State and National Security Advisor. But administration officials say Rubio is in both positions because he represents exactly what Trump wants.

A senior US official said: “The main warmonger on the Venezuela issue is Donald Trump himself, then White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller and then Marco Rubio.”

The American media wrote that in 2019, when Trump wanted to take military action against Venezuela, Marco Rubio dissuaded him and said that we do not have enough military forces in the region to really pressure Maduro, but today Trump has that option.

U.S. officials say Rubio and General Kaine have designed an operation that “keeps the president’s options open.”

Rubio has also purged or sidelined large sections of the State Department and National Security Council staff who disagreed with Trump’s aggressive foreign policy style.

According to Axios, before the start of Operation Southern Spear, Trump first played the role of “good cop, bad cop” and sent his advisor Richard Grenell to Venezuela.

According to the New York Times in October, Maduro offered his country’s mineral wealth to the United States, but he wanted to stay in power and that was not acceptable to Trump.

Last week, however, Trump said: “I might have a conversation with Maduro, we’ll see what happens.”

Sources say that Trump has decided to talk directly with Maduro, and now there is more talk of dialogue than bombing.

“I see the possibility of a diplomatic solution very high,” said one of Trump’s close advisers. “He wants his legacy to be that he did everything he could to stop illegal drugs from coming into this country.”

end of message