The Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity : Lawrence Wilkerson: We Could See a Repeat of the Vietnam War in Venezuela

Lawrence Wilkerson: We Could See a Repeat of the Vietnam War in Venezuela

Written by Adam Dick

Monday May 13, 2019

If the United States military invades Venezuela, we can expect to see a repeat there of what happened in Vietnam — a long war costly in lives lost and ending in defeat for the US. That is the conclusion of College of William & Mary professor and former Army Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson in a recent interview with host Sharmini Peries at The Real News.

Wilkerson, who was chief of staff for Secretary of State Colin Powell in the George W. Bush administration and is a Vietnam War veteran, explains in the interview the strong opposition US military forces would encounter in Venezuela. States Wilkerson:

I’ve worked with the Venezuelan military. They are very professional. I would place them on the top of the list for South America. That puts them above Argentina, above Chile, whose militaries are quite competent too. And I would say that [US President Donald Trump] ought to be very, very careful about saying he’s going to send Marines or soldiers to Venezuela because the Venezuelan military will be unified immediately. It will take to the hills, and it will fight us as the Vietnamese did during the Vietnam Was and as the Taliban are in Afghanistan right now — to the last Marine, to the last soldier. And we’ll be going home, and we will not be very successful there.

Watch Wilkerson’s complete interview focused on relations between the US and Venezuela here:

Wilkerson is an Academic Board member for the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity.

Think it is impossible that the US would invade Venezuela? Consider Scott Smith’s Saturday Associated Press report detailing the US-supported Venezuela opposition figure Juan Guaidó interacting with the US military and seeking its support in overthrowing the Venezuela government. The article also notes that “U.S. Navy Adm. Craig Faller, the head of South Command” has declared he “‘stands ready’ to assist Guaidó.”