Part 3/15:
The country hosts a dangerous confluence of influences—China, Iran, Russia, and local Venezuelan military elites—working in concert or in parallel. Chinese diplomatic missions, some resembling high-security enclaves, and Iranian vessels docking along Venezuelan ports, indicate strategic alliances that go beyond mere economic interests. Russian military aircraft and Cuban intelligence officers add another layer to this web of influence, turning Venezuela into a geopolitically contested zone that also fuels narco-trafficking.