On Saturday, two Russian military aircraft carrying about 100 troops and a substantial amount of equipment arrived in Venezuela. While a Russian news outlet claimed that Russia was fulfilling “technical military contracts” by sending the planes, many analysts see the incident as a message from the Russian government to the Trump administration regarding the latter’s approach to the Venezuelan crisis.
Not only has US President Trump recognized Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido as the interim president of Venezuela, but there are signs that the US is planning a military campaign aimed at overthrowing President Maduro, whose regime enjoys the support of the Russian government.
Last week, US and Russian officials failed to agree on the legitimacy of Maduro, after which the latter defied US warnings by having the chief of staff of Guaido arrested.
Read more: Venezuela crisis: Russian military planes land near Caracas
