The capture of the narco-dictator Nicolás Maduro by U.S. forces was not only the result of Washington's military superiority, but the direct consequence of the internal implosion of the chavista regime. This was acknowledged by the ambassador of Russia in Venezuela, Serguéi Melik-Bagdasarov, who asserted that the former Venezuelan leader was betrayed by officials from his own inner circle who were collaborating with United States intelligence.
The statements were made in an interview with the state channel Rossiya-24, where the diplomat described a scenario of disloyalty, negligence, and breakdown of the chain of command that facilitated operation "Absolute Resolution," carried out on January 3 by U.S. forces.
"We know the names": explicit admission of treason
Melik-Bagdasarov was blunt in pointing out that key sectors of the Venezuelan security forces did not act to prevent the capture of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
"Naturally, many local law enforcement officers did not do everything they could", stated the ambassador, exposing the lack of loyalty within the chavista repressive apparatus.
According to his explanation, the betrayal was not an isolated event on the day of the operation, but the result of a prior process of infiltration and systematic collaboration with U.S. intelligence services.
"If what was happening here long before this occurred could be described as treason, naturally it was", he maintained.
Collaboration with the United States and flight of chavista officials
In one of the most revealing passages of the interview, the Russian diplomat admitted that Moscow knows the identity of the chavista officials who actively collaborated with Washington and who left Venezuela after Maduro's capture.
"We know the names of these traitors who fled Venezuela and who were working systematically for U.S. intelligence", he declared.
