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Commentary
Wall Street Journal

Trump Takes Aim at Caracas and Havana

Russia hopes to repeat in Venezuela the humiliation it inflicted in Syria.

walter_russell_mead
walter_russell_mead
Ravenel B. Curry III Distinguished Fellow in Strategy and Statesmanship
Miguel Diaz-Canel and Nicolas Maduroat the Revolution Palace in Havana on April 21, 2018. (YAMIL LAGE/Getty Images)
Caption
Miguel Diaz-Canel and Nicolas Maduroat the Revolution Palace in Havana on April 21, 2018. (YAMIL LAGE/Getty Images)

As Washington and Moscow face off over Venezuela, the Caribbean has become a focal point for global politics for the first time since the Cold War.

The U.S. and its allies have recognized Juan Guaidó as the interim president of Venezuela and demanded that Nicolás Maduro step aside, doubling down on sanctions against the dictator and his allies in Havana. Mr. Guaidó has called on Venezuelans to turn out on May 1 for what he hopes will be the largest demonstration in the country’s history. Yet Mr. Maduro is standing his ground, backed financially by China and Russia, and receiving military and security assistance from Cuba and Russia.

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