As the White House is ‘seriously’ considering a military intervention in Venezuela, top regime-change advocate Sen. Marco Rubio wants to officially designate the Maduro government and citizen militias as ‘terrorist organizations.’

“It is time for the Executive Branch to take important and necessary steps to further isolate Maduro and make clear to the world his regime’s illegality, criminality, and depravity,” Rubio urged, in a letter addressed to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin.

To increase pressure on Venezuela, Rubio, who has long been one of the most outspoken advocates of regime change in Caracas, proposed designating as a Transnational Criminal Organization (TCO) and a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) both the Maduro government and millions of members of the country’s pro-government citizen militias, known as ‘Colectivos.’

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Despite the best efforts by the US and its allies to subjugate Venezuela, the army remains loyal to the Maduro government. The resolve of many Venezuelan citizens to support their elected leader, with arms if needed, also prevents the US-backed opposition leader Juan Guaido from easily taking power, Rubio believes.

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On Friday, the US once again tightened the noose around Venezuelan oil exports, sanctioning around three dozen tankers and two companies which the Treasury says are involved in transporting oil from Caracas to Cuba. At the same time, Washington has acknowledged that its diplomatic and economic pressure options are running dry.

“There is also a military option, which President Trump has said is on the table and remains on the table,” a senior administration official told reporters on Friday, adding that such a “very serious option...is seriously considered as events continue to unfold.”

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