From Syria to Venezuela
Of Israel Shamir
Source: Comedonchisciotte
A few days ago, with an Ilyushin IL-62M transport plane over one hundred Russian soldiers and officers arrived in Caracas. Symbolically, they had stopped in Syria, as if they wanted to reiterate that Venezuela is the next country, after Syria, which must be saved from ruin and dismemberment. The military mission was led by the Chief of Staff, il generale Tonkoshkurov ("prickly", a name that would have made Vladimir Nabokov happy).“Don't even think about it, John Bolton had exclaimed, to intrude into the Western Hemisphere! Hands off Venezuela! It's our backyard!”The Russians didn't play along. Some time ago they had tried to object to US tanks being positioned in Estonia, a short distance from St. Petersburg, and all they got was a lecture that sovereignty means sovereignty, and that Estonia did not need to ask permission from the Russians to receive military assistance from the Americans. Now they have repeated this American sermon verbatim to John Bolton and his boss. First, get out of Syria, they added.
This is a new level in Russian-American relations, or we should rather say comparison.For a long time, the Russians had convinced themselves that their admiration for the United States was mutual, o, at least, which would one day be reciprocated. In any case, this period is over, they opened their eyes and finally realized America's implacable hostility. Read More










