Anti-government protests in Cuba may affect Venezuela's future, as the government seems likely to slow any progress toward a deal with forces led by Juan Guaidó, the Crisis Group's Phil Gunson tweeted Monday.
Gunson, an analyst who focuses on Venezuela, noted that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro's government surrounded Guaidó's residence on Monday after earlier arresting another prominent opposition figure, Freddy Guevara. Caracas is apparently accusing the opposition of involvement in an alleged plot with a criminal gang, but it's possible the events in Cuba are connected to the latest attempts to stifle Guaidó in Venezuela — many prominent U.S. politicians, including Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), are confident that is the case — as Maduro may want to prevent any spillover.
Either way, Gunson writes that "with unprecedented mass protests in Cuba, perceived by both Havana and Caracas as an attack orchestrated by Washington, it seems likely that the momentum towards (slightly) freer elections and negotiations with the opposition in Venezuela may stall."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
He added that "whether deliberately so or not," Monday's events in Venezuela send a "negative" message to the technical mission from the European that is in Caracas this week to scope out conditions for observing November's scheduled regional elections.
-
Grokipedia: Elon Musk’s Wikipedia ‘rip-off’Talking Point AI-powered online encyclopaedia seeks to tell a ‘new version of the truth’
-
7 sweet experiences for chocolate loversThe Week Recommends Treat yourself with chocolate experiences, both internal and external
-
Scientists have developed a broad-spectrum snake bite antivenomUnder the radar It works on some of the most dangerous species
-
Senate votes to kill Trump’s Brazil tariffSpeed Read Five Senate Republicans joined the Democrats in rebuking Trump’s import tax
-
Border Patrol gets scrutiny in court, gains power in ICESpeed Read Half of the new ICE directors are reportedly from DHS’s more aggressive Customs and Border Protection branch
-
Shutdown stalemate nears key pain pointsSpeed Read A federal employee union called for the Democrats to to stand down four weeks into the government standoff
-
Trump vows new tariffs on Canada over Reagan adspeed read The ad that offended the president has Ronald Reagan explaining why import taxes hurt the economy
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
-
Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations
