The Venezuelan government sees America the way many western Ukrainians see Russia—as an erstwhile hegemon and untrustworthy actor with an ugly past of self-serving intervention. Most Latin American leaders have stood behind Maduro since the crackdown began, either out of agreement with Venezuela's leftist anti-gringo stance or in hopes that the cheap Venezuelan crude won't stop flowing their way. (The State Department's statements on Venezuela look positively censorious next to Mexico's curt two-line press release on the crackdown.) Serious sanctions will only play into this narrative, while achieving little in the way of concessions.
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