WI: Pre-Emptive Strike | USA vs Venezuela

GlobalHumanism

220px-Hugo_Chávez_(02-04-2010).jpg


It's 2006, and the US, pissed off at Hugo Chavez and his anti-american rhetoric + diplomatic ties with nations hostile to US interests, decides to launch a pre-emtive strike.

The goal is to topple Chavez and put a friendly president in office

(Operation Venezuela Freedom)

What happens next? Does the current Iraqi Occupation effect the operation? With International community react? Can it succeed circa 2006?
 
Last edited:

Napoleon IV

Won't happen. There is no reason to strike Venezuela, and it is certainly not a threat to the US. If we attacked every nation that spoke badly about us we would be in every nation on earth, and quite a few on Mars.

And 2006 is the height of the Iraqi insurgency. No way the American people would be down for another war while we have two bloody ones already going on.
 

M. Adolphe Thiers

The US already has two theaters of war. Opening a third up with the Iraqi insurgency at its height would spread the military too thin. Venezuela isn't much of a threat anyway, despite its rhetoric.

It's not the 1980s and there's no fear of Soviet influence or troop stationing, so the US doesn't have to rush into paranoid regime change because a critical left wing government took over in Latin America. If the Pink tide was such a threat, then it would have taken decisive action OTL very early.
 
Alcsentre Calanice

Alcsentre Calanice

Gone Fishin'
What comes next?

WI: Pre-Emptive Strike | USA vs Iran

WI: Pre-Emptive Strike | USA vs Russia

WI: Pre-Emptive Strike | USA vs China

WI: Pre-Emptive Strike | USA vs UK (just because they fought two times against the US)
 

god....freyjones

Banned
Not likely. the USA would get some seriously bad rap, and I doubt the USA had the manpower to occupy all of Venezuela. It would have to, considering any resistance could rise in the open country.

I doubt Bush would have had the balls to pull this off.
 

galveston bay

why bother... the history of socialist revolutions, even without the benefit of 20/20 hindsight of how screwed up Venezuela is now makes it pretty clear that ultimately the only harm Chavez was going to do was to his own nation.

After all, it was only a bit over a decade ago (in 2006) that the entire Soviet Empire collapsed like a house of cards. Short of putting Russian or Chinese missiles in the country, or invading Colombia, all the US has to do is sit back, eat popcorn and watch one of the most promising economies in South America collapse.

Which it has proceeded to do
 

nbcman

Donor
The US didn't care about their rhetoric in 2006 as long as they continued to provide about 10% of their oil imports so why would the US decide to invade now?
 

Escape Zeppelin

nbcman said:
The US didn't care about their rhetoric in 2006 as long as they continued to provide about 10% of their oil imports so why would the US decide to invade now?
Click to expand...

Agreed. As long as the oil keeps flowing Venezuela can bad mouth the US all they want. And even then it was pretty clear that Chavez was digging his own grave with his economic policies. Deposing governments is costly and dangerous and for once the US can sit back and watch an opponent destroy his own legacy and the hope for a successful socialist state with incompetence.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top
Top