United States Attorney General Pam Bondi is flexing the US’s military seizure of a Venezuelan oil tanker as the Trump administration deploys warships — and even nuclear submarines — off Venezuela’s coast. The White House says it’s about drugs, but it also signals a broader shift laid out in the new US National Security Strategy. So far, the Canadian government has been pretty quiet about what our closest ally is doing in Venezuela, and about this ominous security strategy.

So what is a middle power supposed to do when its closest ally goes rogue? Host Noor Azrieh asks Ben Rowswell, former Canadian ambassador to Venezuela and now a consultant with Catalyze4.

Plus: how MP Michael Ma stole Conservative Christmas.

CLARIFICATION: In reference to the LIMA group, Ben Rowswell’s position is that Venezuelan political actors were setting their own agenda, and the role of the Group was to align neighbouring democracies in support of those efforts, not to dictate or manage them.

Host: Noor Azrieh

Credits: Aviva Lessard (Senior Producer), Sam Konnert (Host/Producer), Noor Azrieh (Host/Producer), tom sayers (Audio Editor and Technical Producer), max collins (Director of Audio) Jesse Brown (Editor), Tony Wang (Artwork)

Guest: Ben Rowswell

Background reading:

• Opinion: The ghost of the Monroe Doctrine haunts the U.S.’s buildup in Venezuela – and Canada must oppose it – The Globe and Mail
• National Security Strategy  – The White House
• The U.S. has put military pressure on Venezuela for months. What’s the endgame? – CBC News
• Canada ‘continues to monitor’ U.S. boat strikes in Caribbean as questions swirl and allies squirm – CBC News
• It’s like ‘the Monroe Doctrine on steroids’: Canadian politicos react to Trump’s new ‘very chilling’ national security strategy – The Hill Times
• The Trump Doctrine, and what it means for Canada – The Globe and Mail
• Opinion | Canada once spoke out against unlawful American military action. Why it’s time to do so again now – Toronto Star
• Is Canada complicit in Trump’s illegal war in Venezuela? – Canadian Dimension

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