The United States warned about Nicaragua’s growing ties with Russia, evidenced in the Support of the Daniel Ortega regime for Russia’s invasion of Ukrainethe recent agreements between the two countries, and also in legal mechanisms adopted by Nicaragua under the advice of the Russians to persecute civil society and the media.
According to a State Department source, there is “a lot of interest at high levels in Washington” about these ties, to the point that President Joe Biden has taken this close relationship into account in his assessment to continue considering the Nicaraguan regime as a matter of National security.
“We saw after, or during the inauguration of a new term for Ortega (in January 2022), a strong Russian presence. We have seen many visits both ways. Moscow for Managua and Managua for Russia for various issues, many announcements of cooperation in various areas, including cooperation in nuclear technologies, deployment of armed forces, training, etc. Thus, the depth of that bond is evident, ”said the source.
Last February 21, on the anniversary of the assassination of Augusto C. Sandino —a symbol of anti-interventionism in Nicaragua— Ortega supported the invasion of Ukraineafter recognizing the “independence” of the Donetsk and Lugansk provinces, Russia’s script to justify the aggression.
The dictatorship has drawn closer to Russia and China, as the international community has denounced the regime for human rights abuses. According to the same official, information can be found in open sources, reports on training, joint operations, in which Nicaragua has participated with Russia and mentioned the recent participation of the Central American country in military exercises in Vostok, while the invasion of Ukraine was taking place.
Russian influence with repressive laws in Nicaragua
He highlighted the Russian influence in the reforms to the Nicaraguan legal framework in 2020 and 2021, approved by the Parliament under the control of Ortega and used in the repressive escalation against opponents and citizens in general, including the creation of a Cybercrime Law to punish the “fake news”.
“Many of the so-called reforms that were made in the Nicaraguan legal framework in the pre-electoral period, starting in 2020 and 2021, were inspired and advised by the Russian government, following specific patterns, decrees and laws in Russia. Models that were adopted on how to treat the media, civil society, international cooperation, how to limit the civil and political rights of the population. All of this comes from a central cooperation of the Ortega government with Russia, ”he explained.
No “confidence” in the Army
Conversely, US military cooperation with the Nicaraguan Army It has decreased considerably in the last ten years, especially since 2018, when the Ortega regime brutally repressed protesters in the streets calling for his resignation after a failed social security reform.
This repression was carried out by the Police and parapolice groups loyal to Ortega, an illegal armed body that the Army precisely refused to disarm, despite express requests from civil society. The loss of trust is one of the factors in the reduction of cooperation, according to the official.
“Today we have little relationship between the Southern Command and the Nicaraguan Armed Forces. This cooperation has diminished notably in the last ten years and that is regrettable, but there must be trust, shared values to carry out this type of cooperation. That today does not exist, ”he said.
Russia and Nicaragua define “atomic” roadmap
On November 22, the Nicaraguan and Russian regimes signed a roadmap for the use of atomic energy for peaceful purposes.
The roadmap was signed by the Nicaraguan ambassador to Russia, Alba Azucena Torres, and the executive director of the Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corporation, Alexey Likhachev, within the framework of the XII Atomexpo International Conference, the largest Russian exhibition on energy atomic.
“This instrument is in line with the legal bases for cooperation in the use of atomic energy for peaceful purposes. With the signing of the roadmap, the guidelines are drawn up to advance in the field of cooperation of non-energy applications of nuclear and radiological technologies”, reported propaganda media of the Ortega regime.
“The Government of Nicaragua hopes that Russian cooperation will strengthen the capacities of professionals, especially in the field of medicine, hydraulic, geothermal and wind energy,” the reports added.
Photo: Confidential | Taken from the Presidency.
Agreements with Russia on customs, ICT and land transport
Under the shadow of the atomic energy cooperation agreement signed between the Daniel Ortega regime and Russia, both governments expanded their ties by signing three additional agreements in other areas such as land transport, customs and Information and Communication Technologies (ICT).
These agreements were signed by Laureano Ortega Murilloson of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo, representing the dictatorship and Oleg Khramov, assistant secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, as part of a collaboration plan between the two regimes for the period 2022-2026.
Also part of the signing of these agreements was the chancellor Denis Moncada Colindresand Alexander Khokholikov, Russian ambassador to Nicaragua.
In the ICT component, the agreement establishes cooperation mechanisms in the field of cybersecurity, a matter that the regime has made operational through the Cybercrime Law to kidnap opponents, activists, businessmen and journalists.
Foreign Minister Moncada himself made it clear in the statements that were collected by the dictatorship’s propaganda media. “In this context, Nicaragua has a cybersecurity law that establishes promoting, preserving and guaranteeing the sovereign and reliable use of cyberspace. This step that we are taking today in the development of cooperation helps us to foster relations of collaboration, peace, and security,” said Foreign Minister Moncada.
“Our Political Constitution and Citizen Security Law contemplate the precepts related to information and communication, bases for the defense and guarantee of our sovereignty. The defense of our communications is part of our comprehensive defense. Faced with the great global challenges, information and communication technologies are tools for stability, citizen security and sustainable development”, he added.
In the field of land transportation, the agreement was signed between the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, a retired general Oscar Mojica Obregon and the Russian Deputy Minister of Transport, Dmitry Zverev, as part of the activities of the so-called Transport Forum held in the city of Moscow.
No details of the specific components of the agreements were given, but supposedly this agreement will channel Russia’s advice and technical support on “railroads, ports, regional airports and international airports.”
Additionally, the dictator Daniel Ortega issued presidential agreement 169-2022 published in La Gaceta, Official State Gazette, on November 25, authorizing the Minister of Finance and Public Credit, Iván Acosta, to sign the “Agreement between the Russian Federation and the Government of Nicaragua on Cooperation and Mutual Assistance in Customs Matters”. The regime’s propaganda media did not elaborate on this customs cooperation agreement.
