By Pino Arlacchi
The news of the accusation against President Nicolas Maduro and members of his government for drug trafficking left me speechless.
Looking at the persecution against Venezuela, I have seen so many things, but I honestly did not think that the criminal association in power in the United States would go that far.
After stealing $ 5 billion of Venezuela’s financial resources deposited in banks in 15 countries. After establishing a blockade of the entire economy of the country through atrocious sanctions, with the aim of hitting the civilian population to push them to rebel (unsuccessfully) against their government. And after a couple of failed hit attempts, here is the final shot, the most infamous slander.
The blow is so out of measure that I don’t think it has any relevant consequences. Neither the United Nations, nor the European Union, nor the majority of the States of the planet that voted in favor of the current Executive of Venezuela and its president during the UN General Assembly last September, will give the least weight to this episode of asymmetric warfare.
Nothing will happen because there is not the slightest evidence to support the slander that Venezuela has inundated the United States with cocaine in recent years.
I have also been puzzled because I have been dealing with drugs for 40 years, and I have never met Venezuela on my way.
Before, during and after my position as Executive Director of UNODC (1997-2002), the UN anti-drug program, I have never had the opportunity to visit that country, because Venezuela has always been outside the main circuits of cocaine trafficking between Colombia, the main producing country, and the USA. USA, the main consumer.
There is no illegal drug trade between Venezuela and the United States, except in the ill fantasy of Trump and his associates. It would suffice to consult the two most important sources on the subject, the latest UNODC report on drugs (1) and the latest document from the DEA, the US drug police, dated December 2019 (2).
According to the latter, 90 per cent of the cocaine introduced in the USA. USA it comes from Colombia, 6 per cent from Peru and the rest from unknown origins. You can be sure that if in that remaining 4 per any smell of Venezuela existed, it would not have gone unnoticed.
But it is the UN report that provides the most detailed picture, mentioning Mexico, Guatemala and Ecuador as the places of drug transit to the United States. And the DEA evaluation cites the famous Mexican drug traffickers as the largest providers in the US market.
There is no trace of Venezuela on any page of the two documents. And in no other material from the anti-crime agencies of the United States in the last 15 years (I know the subject very well) do they mention facts that may indirectly lead to the accusations launched against the legitimate president of Venezuela and against his government.
Therefore, it is exclusively political garbage, which I hope will be treated as such outside the political media system from United States.
(Pino Arlacchi is a former UN Vice Secretary)
