It is a common opinion among the medical community that sleeping well is one of the factors for a healthy life. When we see a family member with dark circles under their eyes or signs that their rest is not adequate, we always worry and ask the question: Are you sleeping well?
Observing the face of Nicolás Maduro, one can guess that the president of Venezuela is one of those to whom we would tell if he is resting as “God intended.” Despite appearances, we do not know if the Bolivarian leader eats a copious dinner or if he is consuming mobile devices until late at night. These are habits that do not help you fall asleep and that, according to specialists, detract from the quality of your rest. The last factor not favorable to Maduro’s dream, seeing him in videos and photographs, is his overweight. Perhaps “Super mustache” is warning about carbohydrates and does not eat a balanced diet, which produces disturbances in sleep and even snoring that in this case would disturb the rest of the first lady, Ilia Flores.
As I said, I am speculating because I don’t know if the Flores family’s lifestyle habits are healthy and help them enjoy a restful rest. So I’m going to focus on what is surely keeping Nicolás Maduro up at night. Those upcoming events and decisions that you must make that will mark your rest in the coming years, whether in the Miraflores Palace, in a private house elsewhere in Venezuela, in a prison or in a bed located in a foreign country.
The first of his nightmares is called Edmundo González Urrutia, the opposition candidate for the July presidential elections. More than Edmundo himself, the polls that show him as the winner are the cause of the sleeplessness in Miraflores. Perhaps they miscalculated by letting him make his candidacy official or perhaps they already have a plan prepared to stop him but the temptation is there: return to the path of Barbados and respect the agreements or definitively surrender to the dark side of the planet led by Russia, Iran and China.
The Barbados route is the best way to catch up on sleep after the Government of Joe Biden will reiterate this Monday its willingness to alleviate the economic sanctions against the Nicolás Maduro regime, if it complies with the signed agreements. According to the head of the United States Mission to Venezuela, Francisco Palmieri, the White House is willing to take a step forward. “We remain open to responding positively to significant measures towards the full implementation of the Barbados Agreement,” Palmieri said in a message published on the official account of the United States Embassy in Venezuela.
He insisted that the priority is the holding of inclusive elections in the country. “Today I spoke with American companies about sanctions relief. Our policy seeks to encourage inclusive and competitive elections,” Palmieri added.
But the temptation is still there, Maduro has reiterated on several occasions that he wants Venezuela to become part of the BRICS group. He even aspires for it to be during this same 2024. “We have great hope that this year, when the BRICS summit is held in Moscow, Venezuela will be incorporated as a full member, that we will go from being partners to being a full member of the BRICS “Maduro has repeated that his Government is very interested in joining the BRICS “so that the markets of India, China, Russia, Brazil, South Africa and the new incorporated countries such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia can be opened.”
Again, Russia and China, in the equation with everything that it entails for the oil business without entering into its political connotations. The more economic isolation is encouraged towards Venezuela, the more dangerous Caracas’ partners will be and the less transparent the businesses it closes will be.
A few days ago, the Venezuelan opposition politician Leopoldo López and the expert Kristofer Doucette presented a report detailing the cryptocurrency transactions carried out since the arrival to power of the Venezuelan president, Nicolás Maduro. Democratic governments must counter their attempts to “exploit cryptocurrency to move illicit profits into the international financial system,” according to the report.
“Structures must be put in place to combat this type of money laundering,” said Doucette, national security lead at Chainalysis, a New York-based provider of research and software for governments, exchanges, banks and insurance companies to ensure secure transactions. with cryptocurrencies.
So both Biden and Trump, who have a chance to be president from 2025, must develop policies that improve the quality of Maduro’s sleep. Political change has to come hand in hand with a plan for commercial and business relations from which the Venezuelan people can benefit. And as for the Chavista leader, he has to decide if he prefers to continue with his nightmares in Miraflores or rest somewhere outside the palace thanks to the generosity of the opposition that will win the elections and the American referee of this contest.
