Cuba charges US moving special forces, preparing Venezuelan intervention

Cuba has been a key backer of the Venezuelan government since what is called the Bolivarian Revolution began under former leader Hugo Chavez in 1998.

Cuba charged on Thursday that the United States was secretly moving special forces closer to Venezuela as part of a plan to intervene in the South American country using the pretext of a humanitarian crisis. A “Declaration of the Revolutionary Government” charged recent events in the country amounted to an attempted coup that had so far failed.

US President Donald Trump’s administration has been trying to pressure Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to step down and hand over power to Juan Guaido, the head of Venezuela’s National Assembly.

Guaido invoked a constitutional provision to assume the presidency three weeks ago, arguing that Maduro’s re-election last year was a sham.

These events, the declaration said, had led the United States to impose drastic sanctions causing damage “1000 times greater” than the aid it is trying to force on the country.

“Between February 6 and 10 military transport aircraft have flown to the Rafael Miranda Airport of Puerto Rico, the San Isidro Air Base, in the Dominican Republic and to other strategically located Caribbean islands, probably without knowledge of the governments of those nations,” the declaration said.

“These flights originated in American military installations from which units of Special Operations and Marine Corps operate, which are used for covert actions,” it said.