US Intensifies Anti-Maduro Push, Trump Says ‘All Options Are On the Table’

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will be heading to the UN Security Council Saturday with a very clear agenda: trying to sell the 15 members on recognizing Juan Guaido as Venezuela’s president, instead of Nicolas Maduro. This is unlikely to happen uniformly, as Russia and China have already expressed support for Maduro.

This is part of an ever-escalating Trump Administration plan to try to sell the world on Venezuela’s regime change. Some US allies are on board, but there are still some countries that are not.

It’s to the point where President Trump says “all options are on the table” against Maduro, with the immediate focus being some way to divert Venezuela’s money from oil exports to Guaido, instead of the Maduro government.

John Bolton was setting that out as a priority earlier in the week, though he conceded that officials weren’t clear yet how that would be accomplished. Citgo, Venezuela’s main foreign energy asset, is already gearing up for a fight, envisioning attempts at the company being taken over on behalf of the Guaido government, or otherwise trying to hijack their revenue stream before it gets back to Venezuela.