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Caribbean-Latin America |
How Hezbollah evades sanctions in Venezuela and partakes in Maduro’s drug trade |
2019-05-09 |
![]() To be fair, Maduro did not invent the greatest kleptocracy of the modern era, with more than $200 billion stolen, according to conservative estimates. His predecessor Hugo Chavez set the mechanisms in place, but Maduro perfected them. In 2002, in response to an oil strike and a 48-hour removal from power, Chavez militarized the state-owned oil company Petróleos de Venezuela, SA (PDVSA). Savvy, internationally-trained oil executives were ousted, and loyalist ideological military commanders ‐ who knew nothing about the oil industry but were tied to narcoterrorist organizations, including Hezbollah ‐ took over. The transfer of authority enabled grand corruption schemes, with money supposedly designated for economic development flowing through slush funds. With Maduro’s ascent to power, it all got much worse. PDVSA’s finance department became a money laundering mechanism for everyone from Iran to the FARC to Russian organized crime. |
Posted by:Fred |
#1 ![]() |
Posted by: Skidmark 2019-05-09 02:30 |