The US government has waged economic war on Venezuela for years. The Donald Trump administration is escalating this with threats of military intervention. Ben Norton discusses the history of sanctions and US-backed coup attempts against President Nicolás Maduro, explaining why Washington wants to topple this ally of China, Russia, and Iran, so US oil corporations can exploit the South American nation's natural resources.

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zU17g3DXwiY

Check out our related video on how the US government supports drug traffickers in Latin America: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwCducQ8HHw

Topics

0:00 US-backed coups in Latin America

1:32 US economic war on Cuba

2:15 Venezuela's alliance with China & Russia

3:12 Dedollarization

4:17 Petrodollar system

5:45 US military threatens Venezuela

7:53 Drug production

8:37 US-backed drug trafficker in Colombia

9:24 US-backed drug trafficker in Ecuador

11:35 Fentanyl

12:52 UN data on drugs

13:39 Marco Rubio opposes international law

14:58 (CLIP) Marco Rubio attacks UN

15:42 "Cartel de los Soles" doesn't exist

16:32 Colombia's President Gustavo Petro

17:27 US-backed coup in Venezuela in 2002

18:53 Guarimbas: coup attempts in 2014 & 2017

19:28 Obama dubs Venezuela "threat"

19:54 US economic war & sanctions

21:16 Oil exports

22:16 US collapses Venezuela's oil industry

23:24 Coup attempt with Juan Guaidó in 2019

24:09 (CLIP) John Bolton boasts of coup

24:59 Trump admin discussed military attacks

26:02 Failed invasion in 2020: Operation Gideon

28:41 Bolivarian Revolution

30:25 Marco Rubio's drug lies

31:46 US bounty on Maduro's head

33:27 Scholar: "Cartel of the Suns" doesn't exist

35:10 US invasion of Panama in 1989

36:19 US turned against Saddam Hussein

36:52 Coup strategy

37:34 US intel debunks Trump admin's drug lies

39:49 Tattoos as "proof" of cartel membership

41:17 Juan Guaidó worked with drug cartels

43:06 Guaidó gang's corruption

43:52 US empire's puppets in Latin America

44:51 Colonialist Monroe Doctrine

45:46 (CLIP) John Bolton on Venezuela's oil

46:53 Trump wants Venezuela's oil

47:52 Goals of US empire

49:16 Outro