Bolton cancels South Korea trip 'to focus on events in Venezuela'

[DonViejo]

Source: CNN



By Betsy Klein, Allie Malloy, Ralph Ellis and Caitlin Hu, CNN

Updated 5:25 AM ET, Sat February 23, 2019

(CNN) - US national security adviser John Bolton has canceled his trip to South Korea next week, even as preparations ramp up for a second summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

"Ambassador Bolton has canceled his travel to the Republic of Korea to focus on events in Venezuela," National Security Council spokesman Garrett Marquis said in a statement. Bolton is still planning to travel to Hanoi, Vietnam, with President Trump for the North Korea summit, which starts February 27, he said.

Bolton, who famously flashed reporters a yellow notepad with the scrawled words "5,000 troops to Colombia" during a briefing about Venezuela last month, won't be the only high-ranking US official focusing on the divided, oil-rich country.

Monday, US Vice President Mike Pence is expected to travel to Colombia in an effort to pressure embattled Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to step down. He plans to meet with the Lima Group, a regional bloc of nations, and deliver remarks to address the "tragic humanitarian and security crises unfolding in Venezuela and ongoing US efforts to deliver aid to the country."



Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2019/02/22/americas/bolton-cancels-south-korea-trip-intl/index.html

[Firestorm49]

1. Bolton: War! Yippee! War, yippee! War, yippee!

[snort]

2. If I'm busy war presidenting

they can't throw me in jail, can they?

[yaesu]

3. I bet bolthead is pissed that the CIA isn't doing a MAGA on Venezuela fast enough

He's probably sending in some private military contractors to help stir things up.

[soryang]

4. I doubt if anyone in the South Korean govt wanted him around nt

[SWBTATTReg]

5. Where's the 'I alone, can do it all' claim? What's the matter, can't handle more than 1 thing...

at a time? You are just showing how incompetent you are for the job at hand. Resign if you can't handle more than 1 thing at a time. Scary and incompetent.

[Power 2 the People]

6. John Bolton and Elliott Abrams. Two merchants of death who gleefully bathe in blood.

The US needs to let the Venezuelan people decide for themselves how they want to be governed. Haven't we done enough damage in the world in our thirst for cheap oil?

[yonder]

7. 'to focus on events in Venezuela'

translation: "what's the easiest way to get our hands on that crude?"

[GatoGordo]

8. The easiest way would be to rebuild the entire oil infrastructure in Venezuela

About $40-60 billion to get it up to where it was 20 years ago. So it doesn't look very cost effective from the Capitalist perspective. Far easier to get it from Guyana, who has shitloads of it. Untapped. Ready to exploit.

PdVSA was nationalized in the 1976. So Uncle Sam can't get his hands on anything.

[mahina]

9. I guess I thought that was the goal, to de-nationalize it.

Guessing they don’t plan to take oil for the USA as much as work as mercenaries for the multinational oil companies.

I don’t pretend to know anything about the situation there but unfortunately this looks awfully familiar.

I hope you’re right.

[EX500rider]

10. No Venezuelan govt is going to "de-nationalize" their oil as that is about their only income.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Venezuela

[MRubio]

13. You mean like we got our hands on Iraq's oil?

I counted at least 11 different countries producing oil in Iraq.

Scroll down to see what countries are producing Iraq's oil and what percentage each has of the fields that they're managing.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petroleum_industry_in_Iraq

[m-lekktor]

11. He needs to help Iran/Contra criminal Elliot Abrams and others administer the rightwing coup!!

The neolibs and neocons are counting on Trump and the gang to depose the "evil socialist dictator" who refuses to give us all that Venezuelan oil that is rightfully ours!

[EX500rider]

12. They already sent us their oil.

[Devil Child]

14. The march for war in Venezuela continues

Maduro is now the suddenly the world's worst dictator who must go NOW. People continue to binge on this narrative without question.