Thread by @ACLatAm

STARTING NOW! Voices of @ACLatAm, @ForeignPolicy & the @GordonInstitute discuss w/officials from #LatinAmerica, #US, & #EU, ways in which the global community may address the current security & humanitarian challenges facing #Venezuela. Watch it live here: atlanticcouncil.org/event/venezuel…

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute What is the primary concern for the region if complacency & inaction set in following the UNGA meetings, asks @jmarczak? Escalation is far and away the leading concern, the possibility of the Venezuelan situation "blowing up," says former president of Costa Rica @luisguillermosr

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr This makes the need for various forms of international intervention - not including military intervention - so pressing, says @luisguillermosr #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr Costa Rica itself has received its quota of Venezuelan migrants and, while it may not be as large as those of #Colombia, #Ecuador or #Peru, we can still fathom the human costs of the actions of this horrible regime, explains @luisguillermosr #ACVenezuela

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr As @MarceldeVink explains, the pressure must be maintained to prevent escalation. Targeted sanctions are useful, but the global community must prioritize creating the conditions for diplomatic talks between the Maduro regime and interim government to resume #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink This migration crisis has an impenetrable complexity, explains Dev. & Migration Director of Colombia Ministry of Foreign Affairs Victor Bautista, so the need for increased global support for key sectors such as healthcare, housing, education and logistics #ACVenezuela

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink We need to strengthen borders to identify and process the migrant populations and give government the information necessary to manage their arrival and stay in Colombia, says Victor Bautista #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink Article VI of the Rio Treaty is to be invoked (as it was last week at the #UNGA) when their is a threat against the sovereignty or the peace of a member-nation, says VZ interim government Ambassador to the OAS @tarrebriceno #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink @tarrebriceno The fight against these threats in VZ is on two fronts: (1) the domestic front with interim-government aligned opposition parties & other local entities, and (2) the international front, where the interim gov. seeks to form a coalition with Rio Treaty members, says @tarrebriceno

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink @tarrebriceno Building this support coalition through the Rio Treat has been a slow but steady and increasingly successful process, says @tarrebriceno #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink @tarrebriceno How does VZ's illicit gold industry impact Aruba and the Caribbean at large? According to @joselincroes, it's become a divisive issue in Aruba-VZ relations, one that the island state has addressed by implementing a total ban on the import, export & transport of VZ gold & metals.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink @tarrebriceno @joselincroes Should Venezuelan crisis be permitted to escalate, the criminal activity that's plagued the Caribbean basin for decades will only be made worse, says @luisguillermosr. Narcotraffickers provide the Maduro regime w/the resources it needs to survive & must be stopped. #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink @tarrebriceno @joselincroes The activity of these criminal networks undermine any and all success of the global community's efforts to accelerate Venezuela's democratic transition and resolve the country's humanitarian crisis, explains @luisguillermosr #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink @tarrebriceno @joselincroes The Kingdom of the Netherlands is deeply concerned with the proliferation of international human, drug and weapons trafficking in the Caribbean basin during the Venezuelan humanitarian, political and economic crises, says @MarceldeVink #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink @tarrebriceno @joselincroes Security, peace and stability in Venezuela are necessary pre-conditions for the international investment that will be critical in the post-Maduro reconstruction of the country, says @MarceldeVink #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink @tarrebriceno @joselincroes It's not that criminals occupy high profile positions in the Maduro regime, it's that they are being permitted to take over, explains @tarrebriceno #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink @tarrebriceno @joselincroes The sanctions levied by the global community against targets in the Maduro regime have been avoided with the help of Russia, China & Turkey and, further, by these illicit miners, narcotraffickers & other criminal groups that enable the regime, says @tarrebriceno #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink @tarrebriceno @joselincroes How long can Bogotá tolerate Maduro's support of Colombian insurgents? In short, the sooner this is addressed, the better. FARC & ELN activity in VZ threatens Colombia's, and therefore the region's ability to respond to the crisis, says Victor Bautista #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink @tarrebriceno @joselincroes While Colombia and Peru host the largest absolute number of Venezuelan migrants and refugees, Caribbean nations such as Aruba is now home to the most Venezuelan migrants per capita, putting enormous pressure on the governments of the region, explains @joselincroes #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink @tarrebriceno @joselincroes The Netherlands has increased its engagement with the IOM and UNHCR in recent months in order to better manage its response to the Venezuelan migrant crisis, but there's still more to be done. Taking it on alone is not sustainable, says @MarceldeVink #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink @tarrebriceno @joselincroes We need to demonstrate solidarity with our Venezuelan neighbors, and one way of accomplishing that is by incorporating especially young Venezuelan migrants into the formal Colombian economy, explains Victor Bautista of the Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs #ACVenezuela.

@ForeignPolicy @GordonInstitute @jmarczak @luisguillermosr @MarceldeVink @tarrebriceno @joselincroes And that's a wrap! Thanks to partners @ForeignPolicy and @GordonInstitute for their tremendous help. You can check out the full video of today's #ACVenezuela event, "Venezuela: From UNGA Commitments to a Global Action Plan" here: