Twenty National Liberation Army (ELN, in Spanish) members, recognized as the last guerrilla in Colombia, surrendered to the military following clashes in the Cauca department in the southwestern part of the country, Colombian President Iván Duque announced on April 29, via Twitter. Colombian Minister of Defense Carlos Holmes-Trujillo echoed Duque’s [ … ]
White House: US Offer to Nicolás Maduro ‘is too generous’
In an interview with Voice of America, Mauricio Claver-Carone, senior director of the National Security Council Office for Western Hemisphere Affairs, urged Nicolás Maduro to seriously consider the plan presented by the government of U.S. President Donald Trump to create a transitional government. Neither Maduro nor Interim President Juan Guaidó [ … ]
Investigative Journalism Report Reveals ‘Corporate Labyrinth’ of Venezuelan Defense Minister
According to the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), the family of Venezuelan Defense Minister General Vladimir Padrino López was involved in a business network that included 24 companies based in the United States and Venezuela. “His family has built up a web of private companies and real estate [ … ]
JTF-Bravo Strengthens Central America Against COVID-19
U.S. Southern Command’s Joint Task Force Bravo (JTF-Bravo) is deploying its humanitarian arm in Central America to strengthen response capabilities and halt the rapid spread of COVID-19. JTF-Bravo is sending health supplies to protect doctors, nurses, service members, and police forces. This aid began to reach the region in early [ … ]
United States-Dominican Republic: Partners in Security and COVID-19
The United States and the Dominican Republic enjoy a strong bilateral security cooperation which includes emergency preparedness training and financial assistance for the Dominican government to better serve its citizenry during a disaster. As the world confronts COVID-19 together, these resources and training are being put into practice. On April [ … ]
Venezuela: Generals for Hire: the Corruption of Maduro’s Military Hierarchy
General Vladimir Padrino, the Venezuelan minister of Defense, is worth millions of dollars according to a new report published on April 10, 2020, by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP). Hernan Akhnanton Noguera, another high-ranking general in the Nicolás Maduro regime, is also reported to make millions. Yet [ … ]
The Truth About Cuba’s Medical Missions
With the global pandemic, Cuba is once again promoting its medical missions to other governments facing a shortage of medical professionals. But those governments, while desperate for help, should know what they are getting into. Abusive conditions are the reality for many of the 34,000–50,000 Cuban medical workers in more [ … ]
Maduro Fails Venezuelans on COVID-19
Hospitals across Venezuela face supply shortages that affect both doctors and patients. According to a national survey conducted on April 2 and certified by the National Assembly, 92 percent of the health sector doesn’t have soap on site. The same survey found that 61 percent doesn’t have face masks, and [ … ]
Abrams: ‘Every Dictatorship in Latin America Ends with a Negotiation’
U.S. Special Representative for Venezuela Elliott Abrams said on April 8 that the idea of negotiating with the regime to end the crisis is “realistic.” “Every dictatorship in Latin America, with the rarest of exceptions, ends with a negotiation,” Abrams said via teleconference, where he defended the U.S. Department of [ … ]
Venezuela: A Narco’s Dream
Since the 1980s, drug cartels have always dreamed of operating in a narco-state. From Pablo Escobar and his murderous Medellín Cartel to Joaquin Guzman’s Sinaloa Cartel, different cartels have searched for ways to hold absolute power over their governments, said former President of Colombia Andrés Pastrana in an interview with [ … ]
US Coast Guard, Costa Rican Authorities Seize 771 kg of Cocaine
The U.S. Coast Guard and Costa Rican authorities seized approximately 771 kilograms of cocaine on April 9 with an estimated value of more than $29 million, from a fishing boat in international waters of the Pacific Ocean off Central America, according to the U.S. Coast Guard 11th District Pacific Southwest. [ … ]
Brazil Kingpin Arrested in Mozambique
One of Brazil's most wanted criminals, an alleged drug lord accused of running the international cocaine operation of the country's biggest gang, was arrested on April 13 in Mozambique, authorities said. Gilberto “Fuminho” Aparecido dos Santos, an alleged leader of the First Capital Command (PCC), was arrested in an international [ … ]