Noisy Room and Memri have the story:
In April of this year, Maduro’s Defense Minister paid an interesting visit to Moscow. Vladimir Padrino Lopez the Defense Minister, would meet his Russian counterpart, Sergey Kuzhugetovich Shoygu, at the Conference on International Security,
In his speech at the conference, Padrino López expressed Venezuela’s concern over the cooperation agreement signed between Venezuela’s neighbor Colombia and NATO, in order to fight “organized crime.” “NATO has a sad history of warlike actions in the past… NATO is an organization with high operational character and a history of aggression,” he stressed.[6]
If the name sounds familiar, Shoigu is the guy who said in 2014 that Russia intends to install military bases in Vietnam, Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, the Seychelles, Singapore and several other countries.
In Venezuela, Maduro depends on Russia, Iran and Syria for financial and strategic backing.
The opposition to Mr. Maduro also is up against an array of international antidemocratic forces. The cabal is run by Cuba on the ground but backed financially and strategically by Iran, Russia and Syria. These countries have been preparing for many years for a conflict that would establish Latin America’s “new world order.” They would also welcome the inevitable refugee crisis.
. . .
Russia supplies arms to Venezuela. In November the Kremlin sent new aviation and air-defense technology to Caracas. Reuters reported in May that Venezuela now has “5,000 Russian-made MANPADS surface-to-air weapons,” representing “the largest known stockpile in Latin America.”
Read also Memri‘s May 2017 analysis of Russia-Venezuela relations.
Meanwhile, here in the U.S. the major media outlets carry on with a RussiaRussiaRussia narrative for which there is no evidence.
Venezuela is in hock to the Russians (and the Chinese) for unpayable loans made in return for oil. Unlike US oil purchases, these loans generate no cash when the oil is delivered and the loan money has already been spent or stolen. The Russkis (like the Chinese) will either get screwed royally or demand access to Venezuelan oil fields so they can pump out their payments themselves. Next will follow some sort of military build-up in Venezuela on the premise of protecting the oil projects. Nice little colonial territory grab in the making. I guess the staunchly anti-imperialist Chavistas can’t see this, or simply don’t care as long as the money keeps flowing to their pockets. Corrrea is on the same path in Ecuador with the Chinese, who are merrily polluting 7 million acres of Rain Forest while the leftists loons rant and rave about Chevron, the imperialist monster that never drilled in Ecuador (LOL), and which owes them billions.
Report: Moscow Takes Control of Venezuelan Oil Assets amid Socialist Meltdown
Just saw this headline this morning.
You’re correct, Rick; they “simply don’t care as long as the money keeps flowing to their pockets”
Well, they sell weapons, just like us, we are always arming somebody.