Russia faces three sets of problems due to U.S. operation in Venezuela, Ukraine’s former FM says

As a result of the U.S. operation in Venezuela, Russia is facing three groups of problems – political, reputational, and energy-related – for which no solutions are currently in sight.

This opinion was expressed on Facebook by former Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin, Ukrinform reports.

“Russia has three groups of problems because of the U.S. operation in Venezuela. And for now, no solutions are visible – on the contrary, everything will become more complicated. That is why this operation is only a plus for us,” the diplomat noted.

According to him, the first group of problems is political, or status-related. In this context, the former minister recalled that the Soviet Union, and later Russia, had been building its presence in Latin America since the 1950s.

“There are all the prerequisites for these efforts to be nullified – there is a chance to turn this page. After the loss of Syria, this would mean an almost complete loss of global player status and its replacement with that of a regional one, and this is a direct result of Russian aggression,” Klimkin believes.

The second group of problems is reputational, since “propaganda is propaganda, but there are no fools in the world.” In the diplomat’s view, almost everyone will draw parallels between the effective and striking actions of the United States and Russia’s so-called “special military operation.” He also noted that the recent strategic agreement between Russia and Venezuela demonstrates the real value of Russian support.

The third, and in fact the main problem is energy-related, Klimkin is convinced.

“With strong cooperation with Saudi Arabia and control over Venezuela’s oil resources, the United States will obtain a carte blanche to control oil prices and oil flows – the very same ‘cards’ Trump likes to talk about. The only question is how Trump will choose to play them. This is not just about us. If he wants, he may keep them up his sleeve. There is plenty to work on,” the former foreign minister concluded.

As reported by Ukrinform, the United States carried out a large-scale strike against Venezuela, and President Nicolás Maduro and his wife were captured and taken out of the country.