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World Looks On With Concern, As Chavez and Castro Prepare for War
Hugo Chavez appears to have adopted Fidel Castro's strategy of defense. The strategy, called "The War of the Entire Town," requires the entire population to join with the conventional military in resisting any invasion.
April 8, 2005
Original Article (Spanish)
Last Tuesday, President Hugo Chavez formally announced the decree calling for the "conscription of military reservists" around the country, and the incorporation of civil society into activities to "maintain national peace."
Chavez said that he hoped for "one or two million organized, trained and suitably equipped reservists, ready to defend the sovereignty and greatness of this land."
"If someone comes here to try and snatch the mother country form us, they will bite the dust," said Chavez, during Sunday radio and television program, "Hello, Mr. President." Without giving details, it said that the reservists "will be ready to defend, in nearby towns, the sovereignty and greatness of this land."
Chavez, that it has repeatedly said over the past year that Washington plans to assassinate him, has sworn that the military and civilians will be prepared if America invades, and attempts to seize Venezuela's abundant oil fields. American officials have denied any plans for an invasion, but have criticized the purchase of Russian helicopters and 100,000 Kalishnikov rifles, which it says could fall into the hands of rebel groups.
The Venezuelan government has defended the weapons purchases, saying that they will remain under the control of the nation's military. Chavez accuses the U.S. of being behind an attempted coup d'etat in 2002, which Washington denies. Nevertheless, Chavez said this week that he does not want to be "an enemy" of the United States, his main petroleum buyer.
THE OPINIONS OF ANALYSTS
Experts on the subject, generally members of previous governments, say that Chavez' intentions are clear. Fernando Ochoa Antich, a minister of defense under former president Carlos Andres Perez, believes Chavez wants his own personal military service.
"Being a former member of the military himself, the president knows that the professional armed services cannot serve as part of his own 'personal' government, so Chavez is therefore looking for a more ideological military service, that will have officials that have not been formed within traditional military institutions, and that have a structure of control that will obey him blindly."
[Editor's Note: In 1992, Chavez attempted to overthrow the government of Carlos Andres Perez.]
Ever since 2002, when a movement arose in the military to overthrow him, Chavez has mistrusted the Armed Forces. Now, under the president's recent decree, the military services will be obliged to eliminate dissidence within its ranks.
Little by little, Chavez has become so entrenched in power that nobody can remove him from the presidency. Ochoa Antich says he is sure of what Chavez is trying to do. "Without a doubt, he seeks to create a militarized society."
In 2005, there were accusations from the [U.S.] Departments of State and Defense against the Chavez government for, supposedly, purchasing weapons in an "untransparent" manner, violating human rights, failing to behave properly within the rules of democratic-representative government, destabilizing governments in the region, and not fighting the Colombian insurgency.
Like Chavez, General Lopez Hidalgo has defined the strategic enemy as the White House. The secretary of the Venezuelan National Defense and Security Council, he has also referred to the "permanent threat" that the United States represents, and that this could mean facing the possibility of an asymmetric war. Such a war would be civic and military, and rely on a "network of social intelligence," according to analyst Alberto Garrido.
The organization of this civic-military structure would have three interlocking levels:
a) The regular military; b) The cooperative military-reserve forces; and, c) The popular reserve, to flexibly integrate resistance to an invasion, chiefly from Colombia or the United States.
For Garrido, "The announcement that Venezuela's defense will plan for an asymmetric war leads one to an immediate conclusion: The government has considered the likelihood that it could lose control of the State, as happened with the Taliban in Afghanistan or the Baath party in Iraq. That moment could come quickly if the invasion is sudden, in the case of a blitzkrieg. Or it might take a bit longer in the case of a land battle, with columns of tanks and infantry, but in either case, Venezuela's conventional military would be transformed into a defensive system of irregular forces."
CASTRO SAYS THAT HIS COUNTRY IS INVULNERABLE
Cuban President Fidel Castro said that his country is "invulnerable" to a military invasion, while taking part in a meeting to evaluate the results of military exercises with Venezuela, called Bastion-2004, the "most fruitful exercises that I have ever witnessed," he said on Tuesday.
"The improvement in the handling of weapons ... gives one the belief that the enemy can be defeated, and more quickly than we had thought in the past," Castro said in front of military commanders, and government and Communist Party leaders.
Bastion-2004, the largest military exercises Cuba has seen since 1986, took place last year, from December 13 to 19. The exercise took place around the country, with the participation of about 1,200 civic groups and 1,000 economic groups from around the country.
[Editor's Note: Last year, Cuban officials said that about 100,000 soldiers, some 400,000 reservists, and "millions" of civilians took part.]
"Bastion 2004 established that 'the Revolution' is invulnerable to a land invasion," Castro said in a letter published in the local press.
In the, Castro laid much emphasis on the "important meaning" the exercises had, both at the national and international level, that "contributed in such a significant way to a strengthening of the defense capabilities" of the island in the face of the United States.
Cuba "will never buckle under the constant threats and aggressions of Yankee imperialism, which has never given up its wish to destroy the Cuban Revolution," adds the text of the letter.
In the mid-1980s, Cuba elaborated a new military doctrine called, "War of the Entire Town," which organizes the entire population into 400,000 zones of defense. In addition to the regular army, the military's "Territorial Troops," comprising a million men and women, as well as what is called, the "Brigades of Production and Defense," an additional 3.5 million people, are organized into more than 60,000 units.
For Castro, the "country can be invaded, even occupied, but never won," while his brother Raul, the minister of the armed forces, sees the War of the Entire Town as, "an enormous wasp's nest that will repel any aggressor."
April 9, 2005
China's Foray Into Latin America
By Frederick W. Stakelbeck, Jr.
Over forty years after the Cuban Missile Crisis, America once again finds itself in the crosshairs of a determined, Cuban-based adversary possessing the capability to inflict incalculable damage to U.S. democracy efforts and regional stability. That adversary is China.
For two decades, Soviet defense, economic and intelligence assistance allowed Fidel Castros Cuba to project its own brand of Stalinist totalitarianism throughout Latin America infesting countries such as Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Chile. Castros dream of leading a new Latin American empire ended abruptly in the early 1990s with the fall of the Soviet Union, sending the island nation into a catastrophic, decade-long economic freefall.
Recognizing an opportunity for a permanent base of influence and operations in the Western Hemisphere, China has stepped into the void caused by the Soviet collapse to embrace Castro, giving the Cuban leader a second chance to secure a place among the worlds communist immortals.
Castros fondness of China is well-known. In fact, Cuba was the first Latin American country to establish relations with China in 1961. Since that time, Cuba and China have attempted to balance domestic economic expansion with a strong, central control of the political process. As a result, natural synergies have emerged allowing the two countries to develop a mutually beneficial relationship in the areas of defense, finance, education, energy, intelligence, science, and telecommunications.
The bilateral relationship has grown in both its diversity and intensity recently, heightened by Cuba and Chinas mutual disdain for what they see as Americas global hegemony and intrusiveness. Their joint, anti-democracy stance was further solidified in March when Cubas Foreign Ministry Office issued a statement supporting the one China principle and the Chinese anti-secession law.
Recent diplomatic overtures and a renewed commitment to the Castro government make it clear that China views Cuba as a valuable ally moving forward. In November 2004, Chinese President Hu Jintao and 200 Chinese businesspersons took part in the China Investment and Trade Forum in Havana. As a result of this increased economic cooperation, China has become the islands third largest trading partner behind only Venezuela and Spain. This, as Chinese President Hu Jintao reaffirmed his countrys commitment to Latin America by announcing an astounding $100 billion investment in the region in the next decade.
But Chinas primary interest in Cuba is not related to commerce. Rather, the country is interested in fostering defense ties with the island and developing a state-of-the-art intelligence infrastructure to monitor US activities in the region. Intelligence and spying, not Cuban cigars and sugar cane, motivates Beijing.
Since the late 1990s, independent Cuban journalists have reported an increasing number of Chinese diplomats, scientists, engineers, and military advisors arriving in Cuba. As a result, the Cuban Chinese community now makes up 1 percent of the islands total population of 11.3 million people.
In the face of an increasing Chinese presence only 90 miles off the Florida coast, the question remains: Will Fidel Castro become a conduit for Chinese expansionist aspirations in the region setting the stage for another confrontation with the US? Given Cubas dismal economic condition, Castros deteriorating health, and a consensus within the Cuban government that China offers a formidable ally against American regional authority and control the answer is increasingly yes.
When considering the possibility of another confrontation with Cuba, it is important to remember that Fidel Castro is the same man who in 1962 pleaded with the Soviet Union to initiate a nuclear attack on the US He is directly responsible for a Latin American communist insurgency that has resulted in regional destabilization and illegal immigration over Americas southern border. After coming to power, he nationalized billions of dollars worth of American property without compensation to its owners. His clandestine support of Latin American drug smugglers and trafficking is well known.
In March, Cubas Deputy Foreign Minister Alberto Moreno took a page out of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavezs book of socialist paranoia by stating,
US officials are publicly speaking of regime change in Cuba. They were already attacking us as sponsors of terrorism. Now we are told we are an outpost of tyranny. We do not discount the possibility of military action.
These are merely diversionary comments designed to conceal illicit or subversive actions on the part of both China and Cuba.
Both countries are working together to penetrate US intelligence, collect classified information on US ports and navel assets, and secure information on the latest US science and technology. China and Cuba have increased their cooperation in the areas of cyber-terrorism, biological and chemical weapons research and development, and missile capabilities. In addition, Chinas use of the Bejucal base in Cuba, as well as facilities in Wajay and Santiago de Cuba, pose a growing threat to US national security.
In the face of international pressure, comprehensive US legislative action such as the Cuban Democracy Act, which prohibits foreign-based subsidiaries of US companies from trading with Cuba, and the Helms-Burton Act, which denies certain visas and gives American citizens the right to sue foreign investors, should be continued and strengthened. In addition, a Cuban Contingency Plan should be formulated to counter any increased defense and intelligence activities initiated by Cuba which may involve hostile, non-hemispheric foreign powers such as China.
Moreover, bulk carriers and transports offloading at Cuban ports should be closely monitored for offensive or intelligence-oriented contraband including: advanced satellite communications and jamming equipment, missiles and their components, mobile launch platforms, sophisticated military hardware, and tracking devices.
It is no coincidence that China is positioning itself in the Gulf of Mexico, Panamanian Peninsula, Canadas British Columbia, and Venezuela. It is also no coincidence that the Chinese are spending billions of dollars to upgrade antiquated Soviet military facilities in Cuba. Not surprisingly, escalating Chinese economic involvement in Latin America since the 1990s has brought with it a resurgence of socialist behavior and empathy.
Recent actions by the Chinese in the Western Hemisphere are designed to secure state-sponsored outposts at strategic choke points that one day can be used by Beijing to place acute pressure on the US and its allies. In this regard, recent comments made by Chinese sympathizers such as Venezuelas Hugo Chavez that a new geopolitical map of alliances is emerging support a troubling trend of inflammatory comments by Latin leaders. Otto Reich, a Cuban-born US diplomat under the first President Bush stated in March.
The US needs a secure and prosperous hemisphere not only to ensure a peaceful neighborhood in which to live, but also to be able to project its power to the farthest reaches of the globe.
Fidel Castro is an increasingly isolated man frustrated by a communist strategy that has produced 40 years of suffering for the Cuban people. As his years as president wind down, he is seeking to solidify his socialist legacy. What better way to achieve this goal than by playing one final cruel joke on America by allowing communist China unrestricted access to the Western Hemisphere?
One final question for Washington. If an aggressive, Cold War-era Soviet Union made bilateral defense agreements with countries in Latin America; purchased large quantities of vital raw materials from Canada; obtained vast amounts of crude oil from Venezuela; and established ports in Cuba and Panama, would America have stood by and watched?
Frederick W. Stakelbeck, Jr. is a freelance journalist based in Philadelphia and a contributor to the The American Thinker.
