Hypersonic Missiles, Imperial Wars, and Resistance: The New US-Russia Clash in Latin America

bPushback from Latin American leaders is throwing a wrench into Donald Trump’s imperial ambitions. The Summit of the Americas — a U.S.-backed conference of regional leaders — has been abruptly cancelled (officially “postponed” until 2026) after threats of a mass boycott led by Mexico and Colombia.

Joining host Mnar Adley to discuss the Trump administration’s escalating plans for Venezuela, the geopolitical rift in Latin America, and the new frontlines of resistance are Camila Escalante and Alan MacLeod.

Camila is a journalist for PressTV and editor of Kawsachun News. She’s reported extensively from across Latin America, covering Washington’s regime-change operations against Venezuela, the 2019 coup in Bolivia, and the return of President Lula da Silva in Brazil. Alan is a senior staff writer and producer at MintPress News and the author of Bad News From Venezuela: 20 Years of Fake News and Misreporting. His work has been featured in academic journals and major media outlets around the world.

Together, they unpack the Trump administration’s military buildup near Venezuela, the killing of 66 civilians in recent U.S. naval attacks, and the CIA’s newly authorized “lethal operations” inside the country. With President Petro of Colombia filing legal action against Trump for the Caribbean assaults, and Mexico’s Sheinbaum leading regional defiance, Washington faces an increasingly united Latin America unwilling to bow to empire.

As MacLeod notes, Venezuela’s well-trained military and millions of civilian militias mean that any U.S. invasion would be far from easy — potentially another Vietnam in the making.

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