Overview
- Russian spokesman Dmitri Peskov said Moscow is in contact with “our friends in Venezuela” and noted “several contractual obligations,” without confirming reports of a formal request for assistance.
- Multiple outlets reported that Nicolás Maduro sought military help from Russia, China and Iran, a claim not confirmed by the Kremlin.
- U.S. forces have carried out at least 16 deadly strikes on vessels in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific since September, and analysts cite a larger regional naval and amphibious deployment near Venezuela.
- The Miami Herald and Wall Street Journal reported the U.S. is prepared to bomb Venezuelan military sites, while the White House denies a decision to attack and President Trump says he doubts a war and believes Maduro’s days are numbered.
- Russia and Venezuela finalized a strategic partnership signed in May and promulgated in October covering defense and other sectors, as Caracas points to Russian-supplied Igla-S missiles and Su-30 aircraft, and rights groups criticize recent U.S. strikes as extrajudicial with scant public evidence.