A Reuter’s Caracas based correspondent, Andrew Cawthorne, who was once based in Cuba, wrote a piece entitled “U.S.-Cuba rapprochement exposes Venezuela’s Maduro”.

The headline bizarrely suggests a blow was just delivered to Venezuelan president Nicaloas Maduro by Obama’s decision to normalize relations with Cuba. However, contradicting the odd headline, Cawthorne wrote

“Though they are unlikely to admit it in public, both Maduro and Castro may in fact be relieved that an economic lifeline looking likely to come under strain, as Venezuela suffers recession and an oil price plunge, could become less crucial.”

The release of Cuban intelligence officers, jailed for years in the US for exposing terrorist plots against Cuba, was a huge part of this story. The US “war on terror” involves merciless and corrupt treatment of those who combat terrorist plots hatched on US soil.  The harsh rhetoric directed against the US government by Maduro, and Hugo Chavez before him, is more than vindicated by that aspect of the story. Cawthorne won’t say that publicly no matter how obvious it is.

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