William Brownfield: Venezuela has not stopped being a mafia state
William Brownfield shares the same anguish as many Venezuelans and does not hide it: "It's just that Maduro, Cilia, and a few others are not there, the rest remains the same." The influential career diplomat maintains that he sees no difference between those removed in the January 3rd operation and those currently in the Miraflores Palace, because, in his opinion, "they are the same people."
TL;DR
- Brownfield believes the first two phases of Rubio's three-phase plan for Venezuela (stabilization and recovery) show progress, but sees no significant effort in the transition phase.
- He argues that the individuals in power in Venezuela are the same people involved previously, making the transition problematic.
- Brownfield suggests that Diosdado Cabello has sufficient evidence against him for drug trafficking and money laundering from his time as Deputy Secretary of State for Drug Affairs.
- He criticizes past dialogue processes with the Venezuelan government, stating they weakened the opposition.
- Brownfield warns that Venezuela risks being displaced in Washington's priorities due to other global conflicts, especially with Trump's transactional foreign policy approach.
- He believes Venezuela has not ceased to be a mafia state, with pervasive corruption and ties to international criminal organizations.