“They are running maneuvers, right here,” said Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez during an April 18 address in the country’s coastal state of Falcon. Curaçao, one of the Caribbean countries participating in the U.S.-led maneuvers, is 35 miles north of Venezuelan shores.

“This is a threat not only against Venezuela but also against Cuba,” said Chávez. U.S. officials have repeatedly charged that these two governments are “destabilizing” forces in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Washington presents these maneuvers as training of its regional allies in combating “human and drug trafficking” and “terrorism.”

In April the Pentagon also carried out “Operation New Horizons” in the Dominican Republic to train 3,500 local troops. The “acres of armored vehicles, aircraft and olive-drab shelters” sparked protests by hundreds in Santo Domingo, reported the Los Angeles Times.

Beginning May 23, the U.S. Southern Command is projecting “Enjoy Caribbean Lion 2006” maneuvers in Guadalupe and Curaçao, involving 4,000 NATO troops.

The Venezuelan government announced April 26 it would conduct its own maneuvers on its coastline with 10,000 troops and 3,500 civilian reservists, said the Associated Press. Venezuelan officials also announced plans for joint operations with Curaçao, Colombia, Dominican Republic, and Brazil. “We also have the capacity to show our teeth,” said Vice Admiral Armando Laguna.
 
 
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