Latin America

The Maduro Regime’s Illicit Activities: A Threat to Democracy in Venezuela and Security in Latin America

By Douglas Farah

Introduction By Diego Area and Domingo Sadurní Two months after the internationally recognized interim government marked its first year, Venezuela’s humanitarian crisis, the worst ever in the Western Hemisphere’s modern history, entered a new phase. The coronavirus pandemic, which has rattled even the most developed nations, is further straining a crippled health system already unable […]

#DFRLabCoffeeBreak with InternetLab Head of Research Heloisa Massaro

DFRLab's Assignment Editor and Research Associate, Luiza Bandeira sits down with Heloisa Massaro, Head of Research at InternetLab to discuss COVID-19, disinformation, and Brazil.

#AlertaVenezuela: August 12, 2020

By Atlantic Council's DFRLab

After the detention of former Colombian President and current Senator Álvaro Uribe on August 4, 2020, political leaders in the region such as Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado warned that Colombia would become a regime like Venezuela and targeted Nicolás Maduro as responsible for the arrest as well. Machado’s claim was amplified by Colombian congresspeople supporting Uribe and appeared among the most watched videos on Facebook.

Argentina reaches key debt deal amid COVID-19 downturn

By Valentina Sader

Avoiding its ninth default, this deal opens avenues for renewed confidence in the government’s ability to continue to safeguard the economy while establishing a necessary long-term macroeconomic plan for Argentina.

#AlertaVenezuela: August 04, 2020

By Atlantic Council's DFRLab

Following his arrest, two accounts supporting Colombian businessman Alex Saab attacked Colombian and Venezuelan journalists using violent language and threats on Twitter, which is prohibited by Twitter’s policy on safety. One of the accounts – @DenunciaJulio – also showed possible links to Colombian law firm De La Espriella, which represented Saab until July 2019.

#AlertaVenezuela: July 28, 2020

By Atlantic Council's DFRLab

On July 21-23, 2020, Twitter accounts petitioning U.S. President Donald Trump for a military intervention in Venezeula also pushed four hashtags to trend that promoted anti-socialist messaging against Juan Guaidó and Nicolás Maduro. The accounts, all of which had set their locations to Venezuela, showed signs of inauthenticity and platform manipulation, such as posting duplicative content and creating fake engagement.

#AlertaVenezuela: July 22, 2020

By Atlantic Council's DFRLab

Representatives aligned with Luis Parra, Maduro’s illegitimately installed National Assembly president, announcing on July 19 that he had been hospitalized after “apparent pneumonia.” Pro-Maduro accounts used Parra’s name to convey news about his condition and to promote Maduro regime’s hashtags on Twitter. “Luis Parra” trended as a keyword on Venezuela between July 19-21, 2020.

US-Mexico ties: A post-official working visit readout

By Cecilia Godoy

On June 9, 2020, the Atlantic Council’s Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center hosted a timely conversation on President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s visit to Washington, DC—the president’s first international trip as head of state. Experiencing economic contraction and public health crises due to the COVID-19 pandemic, both presidents highlighted the bonds that unite their countries […]

#AlertaVenezuela: July 14, 2020

By Atlantic Council's DFRLab

Brazilian assets removed by Facebook for “coordinated inauthentic behavior” used the economic and health crisis in Venezuela, which has been exacerbated by the Maduro regime, to promote anti-socialist sentiment in Brazil. The DFRLab also found some of the assets shared memes supporting a U.S. military intervention in Venezuela. The same message had been shared before by Rumbo Libertad, a Venezuelan far right and libertarian movement whose members have appeared in pictures with Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and his sons in the past.