Putin seps in to the bloster Venezulan dictator Maduro

Although Maduro walked back last week’s court decision, he retained the power to negotiate oil deals without congressional approval, a tool that may prove very important. China or Russia could yet help Venezuela out of its hole. But China does not seem eager to play a geopolitical role, and it has little to gain from saving a crisis-ridden regime in the Western Hemisphere from seemingly inevitable collapse. Russia, on the other hand, seems to be doing what it can to help Maduro through his hard spell: It is reportedly negotiating loans and further investments by Rosneft that might help the regime through a heavy bout of April debt payments. More…