Venezuela Teetering on the Edge

Venezuela is teetering on the edge of implosion, with intertwined economic and political crises spinning out of control. The country is entering its second month of mass protests where tens of thousands of Venezuelans have taken to the streets daily to call for President Nicolás Maduro to go. The demonstrations began in earnest after a Supreme Court decision in March would have stripped power from the opposition-controlled National Assembly. That decision was quickly reversed, but it proved the spark that lit the smoldering unrest.

The country was hit hard by the collapse in global oil prices a few years back, given that more than 90 percent of Venezuela’s export revenue comes from oil. That – along with alleged economic mismanagement by the Maduro regime – plunged the Latin American nation into economic turmoil. Food and medicine shortages now abound, and violence has skyrocketed. Some 30 people have died over the past few weeks of protests.

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