On matters of national security
National Security (NatSec) as it affects the protection of Canada’s sovereignty, its territorial integrity, Canadian citizens, and the Canadian way of life, from various threats. National Security is about ensuring the continued existence and prosperity of Canada and Canadians.
Richard Masson, Vice-Chair of the World Petroleum Council, says Venezuela’s oil production has been in long-term decline and there has been a ‘huge overreaction’ with what this means for Canada.
The division of the world into spheres of influence implies that smaller countries cannot influence events, and it’s a grave mistake to imagine Venezuelans won’t try. Many of them wanted an American intervention, are overjoyed that Maduro is gone, and no wonder: He and his predecessor, Hugo Chávez, together turned the richest country in South America into the poorest, fortifying their ugly security state with guns and surveillance systems purchased from autocracies around the world.
But now that Maduro is gone, the people who fought for years for justice, freedom, and self-determination aren’t going to want to live in a Trump-backed dictatorship staffed with Maduro’s cronies. One Venezuelan exile, who requested anonymity because of risks to his family, told me that on Saturday, he felt like he was on a roller coaster. First the elation of Maduro’s exit, then the shock of Trump’s press conference, then the angry realization that maybe nothing has changed and he still can’t go home.