Defining Venezuela Policy: A Critical Analysis Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (30 October 2022) – Questions I am often asked to answer are: What is the United States Venezuela policy? What is Jamaica government Venezuela policy? Is Jamaica’s Venezuela policy tied to or dictated by Washington? In the past five to six years, U.S. policy on Venezuela has become one of the most contentious issues in Western Hemisphere affairs. This is an issue which has created the greatest level of division in...
OAS votes make diplomatic solution for Venezuela crisis more difficult Ambassador Curtis A. Ward The vote in the OAS General Assembly (OASGA) in Medellin, Colombia (June 26-28) to accredit the designee of the National Assembly of Venezuela is a retrograde step for the OAS. It further erodes any slender possibility the OAS had to play an impartial role in seeking a negotiated settlement of the Venezuelan crisis. This latest vote is yet another in a series of divisive and controversial votes in...
Stalemate in UN Security Council leaves Venezuelan crisis on the brink Ambassador Curtis (April 08, 2018) — As the pressure mounts on Nicolás Maduro’s regime many analysts no longer question whether his regime will collapse but when and exactly how it will happen. Russia’s role in Venezuela is still unclear, but I strongly believe that Russia does not want a military confrontation with the United States so far removed from Russia’s borders. Military engagement in Venezuela does...
Cold War Hawks Lead U.S. Policy on Venezuela Ambassador Curtis A. Ward Most geopolitical analysts have concluded that there will be regime change in Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro will be out and Juan Guaidó will be in. All indicators so far support their assumptions. One major hurdle remains, and that is which side Venezuela’s military leaders will take – choosing between Maduro and Guaidó. So far, the military is sticking with Maduro, but Latin American militaries in the end follow the...
Trump Needs a Geopolitical Victory Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (02 Feb. 2019) — United States President Donald Trump is desperate for a win on the global stage. So far, by all measures, he is a big loser. His chaotic foreign policy, his administration’s lack of any semblance of a geopolitical strategy, has so far been anything but coherent. If we can be so generous as to ascribe a foreign policy framework or an executable strategy to his administration’s conduct of foreign affairs then...
Not so fast Designating Venezuela a Sponsor of Terrorism, Mr. Trump! Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (20 Nov. 2018) — While acting contrary to U.S. laws is nothing new for the Trump Administration, the latest report of President Trump’s intent to designate Venezuela ‘a State Sponsor of Terrorism’ is yet another example of irrational foreign policy action by this administration. It has drawn a strong rebuke from Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY) the Ranking Member of the House Foreign Affairs...
Venezuela President Maduro, Cuba President Diaz-Canel, and U.S. President Trump duel at the UN (06 Oct. 2018) — The Latin American Advisor (Advisor), a business daily publication of the Inter-American Dialogue asked me to comment on “What Did Leaders Accomplish at the United Nations?” published October 3, 2018. I was one of three individuals asked to provide comments in 250 words or less. The other commenters were Peter Hakim, member of the Advisor board and president emeritus of...
