{"id":3668,"date":"2020-08-09T05:59:10","date_gmt":"2020-08-09T05:59:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vricmonitor.org\/potential-iranian-missile-transfer-to-maduro-as-un-arms-embargo-set-to-lift\/"},"modified":"2024-08-21T14:37:06","modified_gmt":"2024-08-21T14:37:06","slug":"potential-iranian-missile-transfer-to-maduro-as-un-arms-embargo-set-to-lift","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vric.securefreesociety.org\/es\/potential-iranian-missile-transfer-to-maduro-as-un-arms-embargo-set-to-lift\/","title":{"rendered":"POTENTIAL IRANIAN MISSILE TRANSFER TO MADURO AS UN ARMS EMBARGO SET TO LIFT"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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During a virtual forum at the Atlantic Council in mid-August, the head of U.S. Southern Command, Admiral Craig Faller, said Latin America was \u201cunder assault by a vicious circle of threats,\u201d with external state actors as the center of gravity in the Venezuela crisis. Russia, Iran, and China\u2019s role in propping up the Maduro regime has taken Venezuela\u2019s humanitarian situation from a regional crisis to a looming\u00a0international conflict.\u00a0<\/p>

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Last year, VRIC nations assembled in the Gulf of Oman and the Indian Ocean to conduct joint naval exercises for the first time. This year, VRIC nations are signing landmark strategic cooperation agreements to solidify diplomatic and commercial partnerships as an extension of their military cooperation. While not perfect, this alignment is shifting the balance of power in Venezuela taking turns shoring up support for the Maduro regime. Since April, Iran has been the most forward-facing ally to Maduro, sending flights, fuel, food, and technicians to the country under the auspices of humanitarian aid and commercial cooperation.<\/p>

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The dual-use nature of the Iranian state-owned or -controlled commercial entities involved, however, raises concerns that Iran\u2019s feared clerical army, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is entrenching itself in Venezuela. A concern highlighted by Colombian President Ivan Duque when claiming that the Maduro regime is looking to acquire missiles from Iran.\u00a0<\/p>

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As Venezuela\u2019s Maduro regime consolidates its external support, the United States consolidates its strategy for the Americas. On 16-August, U.S. National Security Advisor Robert O\u2019Brien announced the\u00a0Western Hemisphere Strategic Framework<\/a>, the Trump administration\u2019s outlined policy priorities for the region. A key focus of the framework is \u201ccountering economic aggression and malign political influence\u201d and \u201creaffirming the region\u2019s commitment to democracy and rule of law.\u201d The new framework was released as O\u2019Brien, Adm. Faller, and other senior U.S. officials traveled to Panama and Colombia to shore up support and announce U.S. plans to move American manufacturers out of China and into Latin America and the Caribbean, bringing an estimated\u00a0$30 to $50 billion in investment<\/a>\u00a0to the region.\u00a0<\/p>

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This is much-needed\u00a0support, as the region faces a grim economic forecast of 9.4% contraction according to the International Monetary Fund and a shift towards more authoritarian policies. Bolivia\u2019s exiled former President Evo Morales is threatening a comeback to the country; Venezuela is heading toward another sham election; Ecuador\u2019s Rafael Correa has placed his name on the ballot as a vice-presidential candidate for the February 2021 election; and Nicaragua\u2019s Ortega-Murillo regime is suppressing opposition forces, once again. Argentina and Mexico provide shadow support to the Bolivarian Network, while Russia, Iran, and China extend diplomatic reinforcement. China\u2019s new national security law may begin to play an important role in consolidating authoritarian leaders in Latin America, with extradition under the new law threatening to punish dissidents against the Chinese Communist Party.\u00a0<\/p>

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