... not only Venezuela

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo admitted that US policy includes “moving against regimes that are not democratic” such as Cuba and Nicaragua, not simply Maduro’s government in Venezuela, in an interview with Telemundo on February 22nd.

“If you’re moving against these regimes that are not democratic, many Nicaraguan people, Cuban people are saying, “Are you going to help us next?” Cristina Londono asked.

“Yes, President Trump’s administration has done so and will continue to do so not just in Venezuela but certainly Nicaragua and Cuba as well. And you see that. You see that in the policies. They’re very different from the previous administration. They recognize that these governments are treating their people harshly, presenting real risks, security risks to the people, privacy risks, denying them basic liberties. And these are not the kind of things that ought to happen in the Western Hemisphere, and the United States under President Trump is working diligently in not just Venezuela but each of those two countries to achieve good outcomes for those people. The people need to lead those efforts. I’m convinced that they are determined to do it as well. The American people will support them.”

So, regime change is not only on the table, it’s a sought-after objective, not only in Venezuela, but also in Nicaragua, Cuba and possibly and likely others in the future.

Pompeo also spoke of the humanitarian aid, claiming that he hoped the Maduro government would let the aid in and that he is listening. Urging the Venezuelan military to allow the aid and not keep the population hungry.

He also once more reiterated that “every option is on the table.” This was in response to a question by Londono, alleging that Maduro may “turn on his people” and if in such a case the US is ready to defend the Venezuelan people from their own government if push comes to shove.

“We’ve talked about the fact that every option’s on the table, but we are very hopeful that the Venezuelan people and the Venezuelan military will come to understand that Maduro’s days are past, that the regime that has created these conditions ought not be permitted to continue to inflict this kind of pain and desperation on the Venezuelan people, such desperation that 10 percent of the Venezuelan population chose to leave the country. This is a rich nation with a long and wonderful history, and with the right leadership can be so again. So my fervent hope is that the Venezuelan people will resolve this without violence, with a political solution that gets what the Venezuelan people so richly deserve: a free, democratic nation that can be on the road towards economic recovery with all the liberty that the Venezuelan people deserve.”

Pompeo, however, said that the Trump administration was not about to put forward an ultimatum or “show its hand.”

“One of the things the Trump administration’s been very clear about is we don’t show our hand. We don’t tell others what we may do. But I think the Maduro regime completely understands that America is committed to supporting President Guaido and the popular will of the Venezuelan people, and we’re going to be hard at it, not only today and tomorrow as this aid begins to move across the borders, but in the days and weeks and months that follow. This is an objective that we have set to help the Venezuelan people succeed, and we’re determined to achieve that outcome.”

The entire US policy for regime change and fighting against these “regimes” that are not “democratic” is to cause a domino effect and show the citizens of these countries that “the yoke of authoritarianism that has been foisted upon them is not necessary, that the corruption of those regimes is not necessary, that the bad behavior and difficult living conditions that those people find themselves in today is not necessary, that they can have a different life and that they’ll contribute their efforts, their goodwill, and their humanity towards achieving a better political situation, both in Venezuela and Nicaragua and Cuba as well.”

On November 1st, 2018, US National Security Adviser John Bolton also called Nicaragua, Cuba and Venezuela a “troika of tyranny” announced new measures against the socialist countries — promising they “will feel the full weight of America’s robust sanctions regime.”

Bolton said that under President Trump, “we will no longer appease dictators and despots near our shores in this Hemisphere.”

“These tyrants fancy themselves strongmen and revolutionaries, icons and luminaries. In reality, they are clownish pitiful figures more akin to Larry, Curly and Moe,” he said. “The three stooges of socialism are true believers, but they worship a false God.”

On February 20th, Bolton also tweeted a warning to Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega: