08 Monday, March 4, 2019

Established September 3, 2006 Printed at Ali Bin Ali Printing Press Opinion hamad bin suhaim al thani chairman adel ali bin ali managing director dr hassan mohammed al ansari editor-in-chief

Texas’s Emerging Position In Global Geopolitics America Must Stand As A Venezuela crisis shows that the state’s politicians and Bulwark Against Autocracy oil industry executives must step into a leadership role on international democracy and human rights The US House Intel Committee’s hearing will focus on crucial issues like rise of E don’t yet know if socialism will to respect companies that are willing to do crack apart in Venezuela, but as peo- business in that country, the US can chip authoritarianism and threat to liberal democracy around the world ple scramble for basic necessities, we away at one of the great humanitarian crises do know that oil could play a role in of the moment. In this case, the Texas oil in- Adam Schiff theW downfall of the oppressive regime and dustry can play a significant role in putting Tribune News Service the restoration of a civil society. Put another Venezuela on a better trajectory. way, as the Trump administration tries to Venezuela, an OPEC country, has enor- HE House Intelligence Committee oust the Venezuelan regime and support in- mous oil reserves. PDVSA produces oil and will hold its first open hearing un- terim president Juan Guaidó, a key point of sends it to refineries, of which Citgo has der the new Democratic majority. leverage is a boardroom right in Texas. three in the US: Lemont, Ill.; Lake Charles, When I took over as chairman of the Venezuela’s state oil company, Petróleos Louisiana; and Corpus Christi. The compa- committee in January, there was no de Venezuela SA, or PDVSA, owns a refin- ny also licences Citgo brand service stations shortageT of topics that would be obvious ery and retail fuels busi- to carry the company’s fuel. candidates for the committee to focus ness in Houston: Citgo. Let’s not forget that on—China’s growing might, Russian in- As the new Venezuelan Hugo Chavez first touted his Citgo has deep Dallas roots. terference in our election, Turkey’s drift, government attempts to vision to socialise the energy The company was Dallas en- or countless other threats. Our first hear- gain control of the Citgo ergy investor T Boone Pick- ing will not be on any of those topics, but leadership from social- industry to redistribute oil rich- ens’ first takeover target in rather on an issue that may surpass them ist leaders, the US has es to the poor. Now that reve- 1982. In the midst of that all in importance, and yet underlies each: placed sanctions on the nue helps pay for a military fight, Cities Service refin- the rise of authoritarianism and the threat oil company’s finances to that blocks food and medical ing and fuel marketing op- to liberal democracy around the world. transfer revenue and as- aid from getting to the erations were sold to South- Ronald Reagan once called America sets to Guaidó’s reformist Venezuelan people who need it land Corp., the Dallas-based the “shining city upon a hill.” Today, our government-in-waiting. owner of 7-11. A few years light of freedom is shining less brightly. The Texas part of the later, Southland sold Citgo Across the globe, democracies are mired story involves the terrifying arrest of six Cit- to the Venezuelans. in an ugly brand of populism often direct- go executives, five of them US citizens, who Further, a little Irving oil-production ed against “the other,” and are displaying had flown to Caracas in late 2017 for a meet- outfit called Exxon Mobil Corp began invest- a troubling receptivity to autocracy as an ing. Upon arrival, the group was arrested on ing billions in production activities in Ven- alternative model of governance. If these charges of fraud for plans to refinance debt, ezuela shortly before Hugo Chavez became trends continue, it will be a tragedy for but some observers said the motivation was president. When Chavez nationalised the oil humankind and a disaster for our nation- political. Those Americans are still living in industry, he expropriated Exxon assets and al security. terrible conditions in a Venezuelan prison, the company pulled out. As an aside, some- The fight for freedom and democracy according to reports from their families in one from the administration might want to has been a long and arduous one. The liberation and trends toward moderation. Louisiana and Texas. call up Rex Tillerson. As a former secretary blood of millions was spilled in the 20th There is no single cause for demo- At last week’s national-security con- The fight highlights the state’s emerging of state and former chief executive of Exxon, century for the cause of democratic gov- cratic retrenchment, but tectonic ference in Munich, our allies questioned position in global geopolitics, as Texas ener- he could have a few key insights here. ernance and respect for fundamental hu- shifts in the global economy, the America’s commitment to our transat- gy companies continue to boost oil produc- Sadly, Maduro may be completing man rights. Out of the ashes of two world lantic alliance and our ideals. We must tion to record levels. Much of this growth is Chavez’s move to kill the goose that laid wars and the grinding decades of the Cold advent of the internet and new modes respond, clearly and without equivoca- a result of good fortune in natural resources Venezuela’s golden egg of crude. Chavez first War, America looked across the globe and of communication, and the refugee tion, in defense of our values and our and a free-market approach to business, touted his vision to socialise the energy in- saw a world that seemed to be slowly, but crisis have helped fuel populist back- democratic allies. We must be clear-eyed rather than deliberate government policies. dustry to redistribute oil riches to the poor. irreversibly, becoming freer and more lashes that empower autocratic rulers about these threats and recognise that hu- And that’s surely the secret of our state’s Now that revenue helps pay for a military democratic. The world, it appeared, might man progress is not an inevitability, but success. But as its market influence grows, that blocks food and medical aid from get- finally become “safe for democracy,” in will have to be won anew by each genera- Texas politicians and oil industry executives ting to the Venezuelan people who need it. the words of President Woodrow Wilson. tion. They have attacked the independent tion. Our diplomats, military, and intel- should step into a leadership role on inter- Democracy and free markets won’t solve Our optimism was once again mis- judiciary, the media, and the opposition ligence agencies must have the support national democracy and human rights. all of Venezuela’s problems. But unleash- placed. The past decade has demonstrat- political parties in their countries, wag- and resources they need to help America When and where we have property rights ing the market and embracing democracy ed that democratic change is not inevita- ing campaigns of harassment, imprison- lead the free world, and to anticipate and and a rule of law, we expand the opportunity would get more oil flowing out and essential ble, but must be doggedly pursued by free ment, and violence. The Trump admin- respond when Russia, China, and others for human potential. By pushing Venezuela supplies flowing in. Viva capitalism. societies. At present, democracies are istration does not fully grasp the threat seek to extend their reach and undermine backsliding the world over, with threats these trends portend to our national in- democratic societies. to the rule of law, freedom of the press, terest or what it means when treaty allies In his resignation letter as secretary of and independent civil society growing such as Hungary, Turkey, and the Phil- defence, James Mattis defined the stakes, ever more severe. The unipolar moment ippines see their interests more closely writing that it was “clear that China and of the 1990s has given way to an embold- aligned with those of our global adversar- Russia want to shape a world consistent ened Russia headed by Vladimir Putin ies in Moscow or Beijing than with those with their authoritarian model.” He also and an increasingly assertive China led by of the United States. issued what, for the famously stolid Mat- Xi Jinping, both bent on promoting their There is no single cause for democratic tis, amounts to a cri de coeur, writing that own brand of authoritarian rule through retrenchment, but tectonic shifts in the “while the US remains the indispensable a combination of military might, cyber– global economy, the advent of the internet nation in the free world, we cannot protect informational warfare and theft, and the and new modes of communication, and our interests or serve that role effectively skillful use of economic leverage. the refugee crisis have helped fuel populist without maintaining strong alliances and In Caracas, Ankara, Budapest, Ma- backlashes that empower autocratic rul- showing respect to those allies.” nila, Brasília, and elsewhere, strongmen ers. These enormously disruptive societal It is this call that Americans—Demo- have firmly grasped power. Rulers such changes—imagine the invention of the crats and Republicans—must answer. as Viktor Orbán and Recep Tayyip Er- printing press and the Industrial Revolu- dogan came to power through democratic tion taking place simultaneously—have (A member of the Democratic means, but moved swiftly and brutally to tested the capacity of representative gov- Party, Adam Schiff has served in (Tribune News Service) centralise power and stamp out opposi- ernment, which by design moves with de- US Congress since 2001.) Behind North Korea’s YouTube Ambitions The reclusive regime’s social media monetisation is aimed at subverting international sanctions

Tae-jun Kang utilises Youku, a Chinese video hosting North Korea’s total revenue from software the US-led sanctions against the North. Tribune News Service service that is similar to YouTube, to pro- development projects using fake social However, since these are merely a few mote its videos. It has uploaded a variety media accounts could be millions of dol- official channels, critics believe the impact ORTH Korea is famous for operat- of video clips including news clips, North lars. It is unclear what efforts, if any, are is limited. Other argue such moves only ing propaganda websites on an in- Korean music videos, and propaganda being made to stop North Korea’s social serve to limit an important resource for dustrial scale. It is understood that output. media ambitions. studying one of the most isolated and se- North Korea currently operates Separately, in December last year, a One of the most well-known deterrent cretive countries in the world. more than 160 propaganda sites. propaganda website, DPRK Today, add- measures is the shutdown of accounts that The latest summit between the United NThese include news and tourism websites ed accounts on audio streaming website are verified as being backed by Pyongyang. States and North Korea concluded without as well as online communities, all of which Soundcloud and video-sharing platform For instance, Uriminzokkiri’s You- any agreement being reached, despite the are designed to promote North Korea and Vimeo, increasing its list of social media Tube channel was once shut down in 2017 fanfare that accompanied its announce- its ideology and turn as many people as channels. Another propaganda website, for violating the social media platform’s ment. Since the issue of lifting sanctions possible into North Korean sympathisers. SoGwang, also expanded the number of community guidelines. was identified as one of the main reasons Pyongyang does not limit its efforts to social media outlets available on its web- North Korea is hiding from international At that time, a YouTube spokesperson behind the failure of the summit, some its own websites, however. It also has a site for users to share its content from five sanctions by disguising itself on social told Radio Free Asia that the channel “re- view it as a sign that sanctions have had great interest in social media outlets, es- to 17 in January. network outlets and using US job sites, peatedly” violated the community guide- an impact. Proponents argue they should pecially Western ones. Since social media outlets are an effec- instant messengers, and internet pay- lines, without elaborating further. continue until the complete denuclearisa- As the latest example, Uriminzokkiri, tive tool to reach out to a wider audience, Apart from that, YouTube also shut tion of North Korea. one of the most active North Korean prop- it is easy to conclude that North Korea is ment services, WSJ reported down the official account of North Korea’s Japan’s Nikkei newspaper, for in- aganda websites, has resumed providing actively expanding its usage of them for state-controlled Korea Central Television stance, pointed out in its latest editorial YouTube clips on its pages. the purpose of propaganda. This might the US-led sanctions against Pyongyang. in 2016. Before the closure, the channel that the summit proved once again that Uriminzokkri began to offer links to not be the only explanation, however. North Korea is hiding from interna- played an important role in disseminat- sticking with strict sanctions is effective. YouTube clips on its channel from Febru- The Wall Street Journal reported in tional sanctions by disguising itself on ing Pyongyang’s messages to the outside In this regard, it has become more im- ary. It appears that the website reopened September last year that North Korean social network outlets and using US job world via hundreds of videos on the plat- portant to recognise North Korea’s latest its channel, dubbed uriminzok, on You- agents were utilising American social me- sites, instant messengers, and internet form. The cause of that shutdown was move to beef up its efforts on social media Tube this time last year. dia outlets and US technology to make for- payment services, the paper added. also unknown, but observers believed it as sanction busting and come up with con- Apart from YouTube, Uriminzokkiri eign money in moves aimed at subverting Wall Street Journal estimated that was a part of concerted efforts to tighten crete measures to deter these efforts.

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