US strike Venezuela and capture Nicolas Maduro

[MrBirdman]

45 minutes ago, Bijan said:

Presumably they could send doctors and bodyguards elsewhere and use that to pay the US oil producers. I mean if Trump is entirely transactional.

The US won’t have any interest. Cuba has arrangements with other countries but none have been as vital as Venezuela. 

[Bijan]

18 minutes ago, MrBirdman said:

The US won’t have any interest. Cuba has arrangements with other countries but none have been as vital as Venezuela. 

Some posts in this thread made it seem that their situation was critical.

They did somehow survive the collapse of the USSR.

[JohnnyO]

Ghost tankers from Venezuela had been going to Nicaragua and Mexico under a disguised flag. They would turn off their GPS once near port and would move the crude to another tanker or possibly 2. Once headed to Cuba the second tanker(s) with the crude, would turn on their GPS. This is a violation of International Maritime Organizations rules for safety reasons. This gives the US the excuse to seize the vessel as they have tracked 20-30 doing this in the region. It's an easy grab and they'll keep doing it if they have the chance. At this point there isn't any broker that's going to want to expose themselves to a seizure. Everybody wants Venezuelas crude and the US is going to have a yard sale. John

[BrightonCorgi]

When the majority of Venezuelans are living in poverty:

[Puros Y Vino]

Came across this interesting video just now illustrating Venezuela / Cuba links over several decades.  Lots of interesting things I've never heard about.  

It's from Julian Dorey, similar to Joe Rogan, less "Meat heady". 

The guy he's interviewing, Daniel Di Martino is Venezeulan. In short, he's an Economics Professor.  Some info about him for reference.  https://www.danieldimartino.com/about

[yuppie]

I want things to improve for the Cuban people. How that happens and the methods employed are up for debate. Even though the situation in Venezuela can be criticized from the perspective of international law, the people of Venezuela do seem elated that Maduro was removed.

Over the long term, if the situation in Cuba improves for the people and the industry, I'll be glad.

[madandana]

On 1/5/2026 at 7:40 PM, JohnnyO said:

Ghost tankers from Venezuela had been going to Nicaragua and Mexico under a disguised flag. They would turn off their GPS once near port and would move the crude to another tanker or possibly 2. Once headed to Cuba the second tanker(s) with the crude, would turn on their GPS. This is a violation of International Maritime Organizations rules for safety reasons. This gives the US the excuse to seize the vessel as they have tracked 20-30 doing this in the region. It's an easy grab and they'll keep doing it if they have the chance. At this point there isn't any broker that's going to want to expose themselves to a seizure. Everybody wants Venezuelas crude and the US is going to have a yard sale. John

John,

Any idea what the US is doing with the confiscated crude?

[MrBirdman]

2 hours ago, madandana said:

John,

Any idea what the US is doing with the confiscated crude?

They’re taking it to Galveston and selling it, at least so far. It’s unclear what legal authority they have to seize the oil on the latest ship captured, but legality is very much a secondary concern for this administration. 

Most US refineries aren’t geared towards refining heavy sour crude, but I think there are some in Texas that are geared towards heavier crudes. 

[lb.cigars]

https://www.asiafinancial.com/scam-billionaire-chen-zhi-arrested-in-cambodia-flown-to-china

One more step in this story.


Enviado do meu iPhone usando o Tapatalk

[MrBirdman]

4 hours ago, lb.cigars said:

https://www.asiafinancial.com/scam-billionaire-chen-zhi-arrested-in-cambodia-flown-to-china

One more step in this story.

Big news, thank you for posting, I created a separate thread since it’s only tangentially related to Venezuela. 
. 

[SCgarman]

17 minutes ago, MrBirdman said:

They’re taking it to Galveston and selling it, at least so far. It’s unclear what legal authority they have to seize the oil on the latest ship captured, but legality is very much a secondary concern for this administration. 

Most US refineries aren’t geared towards refining heavy sour crude, but I think there are some in Texas that are geared towards heavier crudes. 

Yes they are. Gulf refineries are set up for Venezuela oil. 

[MrBirdman]

2 minutes ago, SCgarman said:

Yes they are. Gulf refineries are set up for Venezuela oil. 

Yeah like I said, in Texas they can handle it so it shouldn’t be an issue. It’s refineries further north near me that can only handle light crude. 

[madandana]

4 hours ago, MrBirdman said:

They’re taking it to Galveston and selling it, at least so far. It’s unclear what legal authority they have to seize the oil on the latest ship captured, but legality is very much a secondary concern for this administration. 

Most US refineries aren’t geared towards refining heavy sour crude, but I think there are some in Texas that are geared towards heavier crudes. 

Yes, thanks Birdman. They just said on the news conference that oil will be sold and funds put into and account and shared between the US and Venezuela.

[BrightonCorgi]

3 hours ago, MrBirdman said:

Yeah like I said, in Texas they can handle it so it shouldn’t be an issue. It’s refineries further north near me that can only handle light crude. 

According to Chat | 25–35 U.S. refineries are configured to process heavy, sour crude at scale, with the majority located on the U.S. Gulf Coast.

[BrightonCorgi]

It sounds inevitable that US forces will be in Venezuela considering the marauders supporting Maduro wreaking havoc. They'll never get to fair elections if citizens are too scared to show their faces. We saw that in Gaza.

[Greenhorn2]

On 1/4/2026 at 12:37 PM, Li Bai said:

That is one dangerous thread...

Exactly why I'm staying out. I can see @Chas.Alpha quivering with the ban hammer.🤣

[Ken Gargett]

On 1/4/2026 at 5:32 AM, SCgarman said:

Cuba will likely fall like a one legged man without a crutch. Time will tell.

they have been saying that since 59. awful lot of US presidents came and went while castro stayed. 

[LizardGizmo]

WSJ: Cuba Is Already on the Brink. Maduro’s Ouster Brings It Closer to Collapse.

Paywall free link: http://archive.today/Zuyw0

[ha_banos]

6 hours ago, LizardGizmo said:

WSJ: Cuba Is Already on the Brink. Maduro’s Ouster Brings It Closer to Collapse.

Paywall free link: http://archive.today/Zuyw0

Cuba survived the Soviet collapse. But it's in a much weaker position this time with the Venezuela sanctions.

There is some oil still going in but this is a major blow.

[SCgarman]

13 hours ago, Ken Gargett said:

they have been saying that since 59. awful lot of US presidents came and went while castro stayed. 

No Fidel. No food. No oil. No power. The odds are not in their favor this time. 

[BrightonCorgi]

10 hours ago, SCgarman said:

No Fidel. No food. No oil. No power. The odds are not in their favor this time. 

Let's hope it's not China to rescue. May force the US to change its tune if China wants to accommodate Cuba.

[JohnnyO]

Havana was business as usual this weekend but there is a lot of concern by the locals. The economy could go in many directions but its too early to tell. I think its wreckless to speculate that in 3 months it would collapse. For the last 25+ years they have been getting by with less and less and reaching a new low. The Cuban government is concerned but they still want to control Juan Q Publico. On local radio they are saying that locals have to militarize themselves and defend the revolution. Oh and it's important that they feed themselves. Wha-wha-what? You want me to pick up some rocks and sticks and go to the beachhead and drive the imperialist dogs out of the country while chewing on a Granma newspaper? C'mon brah, say it ain't so. John

[El Presidente]

I was chatting with Jose Antonio earlier, who said the government has called on the people, from now on, to show up for military practice every Saturday.

[chasy]

It feels like the whole outcome of sanctions against a country / government is that the general population suffers. These politicians and leaders find a way to maintain cushy lives. I suppose the idea is that sanctions make life so bad that the citizens take up arms against the government? Doesn't seem like that works very often. On the flip side, if an outside country removes a bad-guy leader (see Venezuela) it is met with very strong pushback. Truly just observing what I've seen.

Seeing how bad things have been in Cuba for so long. What would have been the right move by the US? Stay out of it? Stiffer sanctions? Remove the leader? What would be best for the Cuban people?

[MrBirdman]

46 minutes ago, El Presidente said:

I was chatting with Jose Antonio earlier, who said the government has called on the people, from now on, to show up for military practice every Saturday.

Dog and pony show. Probably as much for Cubans themselves as it is for the US. It’s inhumane to expect military drills from people who go home to empty pantries and no power.