Imaginary Greatness

How the U.S. operation in Venezuela exposed the weakness of mafia Russia.

The events in Venezuela today are being closely watched not only in Washington, but also in the capitals of authoritarian regimes around the world. The actual removal of Maduro was not just an internal crisis in one country, but a clear demonstration of a more important fact: Russia is unable to guarantee security even to those dictators it has for years called its allies.

Venezuela has long been seen as an example of a "protected regime" - a state embedded in the anti-Western axis, relying on Moscow's support, shadowy financial schemes and sanctions circumvention. Caracas served as a convenient hub for dubious operations, but at the critical moment this infrastructure did not save the regime. Russia was unable to either prevent the U.S. operation or influence its outcome.

This destroys one of the key myths of Kremlin propaganda - the myth of Russia's "mafia toughness," its supposedly special ability to keep its clients in power. In practice, this "toughness" turns out to be a flop. Venezuela only adds to the familiar picture of Syria and Iran, where Moscow's loud statements are repeatedly at odds with reality.

Russia can participate in destruction, but is unable to ensure stability. It can capitalize on chaos, but it does not know how to control it.

"Roofing" is generally a typical mafia business. And the fact that Putin's regime has failed once again is a clear signal to current and potential clients of the Kremlin to think about the reliability of such "friendship."

Modern Russia is neither a vertical of power nor a geopolitical guarantor. It is a mafia system that parasitizes weak regimes, siphoning resources and money from them but offering nothing in return. No security. No stability. Not even effective military capabilities.

In Russia, the law is a fiction. In fact, "concepts", personal loyalty and clan affiliation work. The state machine serves not the public interest, but the enrichment of a narrow group covered by a coat of arms and anthem. This system does not export order - it exports corruption, shadow schemes and dependence.

This is what is discussed in detail in the book "Mafia State: How Russia Failed to Become Democratic", published under my editorship - how criminal practices have been built into the very fabric of the Russian state, how the power structures have become an instrument of market redistribution, and how the shadow economy has become the basis for the political stability of the regime. Illegal business is the natural environment of this system.

It is a mistake to think that it is only about personal enrichment. This money is the fuel of the political machine. Drug dollars, revenues from arms trade and smuggling work for foreign policy adventures. But here, too, the myth of power crumbles. Russia makes money from war, but does not know how to win it.

A telling example is Viktor Bout, Russia's "death trafficker." His activities were only possible with state cover. Planes, routes, clients - everything functioned as parallel diplomacy. Bout's exchange in 2022 was presented by the Kremlin as a triumph. In reality, it was the gesture of a mafia state that protects its enforcers but is unable to protect even its own allies.

Drugs and weapons are only the tip of the iceberg. Under the water are prostitution, gambling, smuggling, fictitious tenders, money laundering through government contracts. This is a parallel economy, which has become the basis of the real budget of the ruling clan. These funds are not just settled in offshore - they are used to finance aggression. The official military budget is just a facade. Real expenditures are covered from "black" sources.

But even these resources do not turn into force. Russian weapons, which the Kremlin tries to peddle and intimidate, are increasingly outdated, ineffective and overvalued. Russia sells the myth of its power, but on the battlefield and in crisis situations, this myth crumbles.

The history with the Venezuelan regime has made this clear. Russia can spend years siphoning off money, participating in schemes and pretending influence. But at the moment of a real test, it is unable to give anything - no defense, no result, no future.

Russia today is not degradation, but transformation. The state has turned into a criminal syndicate, where ministers are "watchdogs," generals are logisticians of shadow flows, and the president is the godfather. And as long as this structure exists, the war will continue. Because for them, war is a business.

Treating Russia as a mafia state is not just a slogan, but a political necessity. This is a step towards sanctions against the whole system, seizure of assets, international investigations. Because what we have before us is not a guarantor of security or an "alternative to the West". We are facing a mafia with a nuclear arsenal.

Leonid Nevzlin, "Gordon".

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