Former Bolivian President Evo Morales has criticized the "Cartel de los Soles," an organization the former U.S. administration of Donald Trump claims is linked to the Venezuelan government, calling it "another fiction and lie." He argued that this U.S. claim is a pretext to threaten and ultimately invade the government of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. The U.S. had previously asked Paraguay to designate this organization as a terrorist group, and on August 22, Paraguayan President Santiago Peña issued a decree accepting the request.
On his Sunday radio program "Kawsachun Coca," Morales stated that U.S. capitalism has a creativity that is "not for good, but for evil." He likened the "Cartel de los Soles" to the "weapons of mass destruction" that were used as a justification for the Iraq War, asserting that the U.S. is fabricating something that doesn't exist to justify invading a country. The U.S. did use the possession of weapons of mass destruction as a pretext for its invasion of Iraq, but no such weapons were ever found in the country. He also added that he is in contact with Venezuelan military officials and that they are ready to stand against the U.S. military threat.
Diverging Stances of South American Nations
The Trump administration has argued that the "Cartel de los Soles" is an international criminal organization linked to the Maduro government and that the Venezuelan government has supported international criminal groups such as Mexico's Sinaloa and Tren de Aragua drug cartels. The U.S. State Department has stated that designating the group as a terrorist organization would cut off illicit profits for the Maduro regime and promote stability in the Western Hemisphere.
In response, South American countries have taken starkly different stances. Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa and Argentinian President Javier Milei have, like Paraguay, recognized the "Cartel de los Soles" as a terrorist organization. In contrast, Colombian President Gustavo Petro dismissed the organization as "non-existent," holding a different view from the U.S. and some other South American nations. Morales criticized the countries that are participating in this U.S.-led designation and announced that he would host an "Intercontinental Meeting for Decolonization" in Bolivia this October.
This conflict between the U.S. and Venezuela over the "Cartel de los Soles" is deepening political divisions in South America and serving as a new source of tension for regional stability.
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