After the military coup in Bolivia, the United States has another Latin American victim in sights. Washington has launched an outreach and awareness-raising artillery barrage for a diversified campaign against Nicaragua to overthrow the government of Daniel Ortega.

On November 25, the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States (OAS), which has become an appendage of the State Department in recent years and operates exclusively in line with the US foreign policy, listened to a report by one of its "top-level commissions" on the situation in Nicaragua. It accuses the Nicaraguan government of violating the rights of citizens and constitutional order. And this anti-Nicaraguan Monday scenario was not to end here. The same day, US President Donald Trump extended sanctions against Nicaragua imposed in November 2018 for one more year. The White House owner once again accused the Nicaraguan authorities of repression, "undermining democratic institutions" and corruption. He said Nicaragua poses "an extraordinary and unusual threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States." So many charges in a single day, against one and the same country and at such a level! A coincidence?

In the region there is no longer any doubt that the US has a direct bearing on the overthrow of President Evo Morales in Bolivia. This is publicly stated by Morales himself, regional politicians and the media. They also mention the role of the OAS in the Bolivian developments, noting that the organization itself "doubted" the integrity of the vote count, thereby provoking street riots and giving the upper hand to the right-wing opposition. In fact, the OAS and personally its Uruguayan Secretary General Luis Almagro were simply playing the role assigned to them by the United States as a figurehead "arbitrator", whose opinion was by no means unbiased, even though everything was covered by statements about democracy and human rights. The OAS, judging by the acute events in Venezuela back in the first half of the year, acts as a minor provocateur and a US tool to put pressure on undesirable governments. And in case with Nicaragua, we see the same scenario role of the OAS playing the part of a lawyer, a prosecutor and an infallible judge.

After the overthrow of President Morales in Bolivia, Trump said it was a tough signal for Nicaragua and Venezuela. And it looks like Nicaragua is the first in the line. In fact, the Americans did not let Venezuela out of their zone of attention. They only made a pause in their continuous attacks on Caracas because of their constant failure and because of the incompetency of opposition leaders like "interim President" Juan Guaidó, whom the United States placed its stake on. It is very likely that due to its persistent and high-profile failures in Venezuela throughout this year, Washington has switched its priority to Nicaragua. The United States will certainly get back to Venezuela. As for now, Washington decided to once again test President Ortega for destruction. Nicaragua is waiting for a new Maidan, like the one of 2018 which failed to become a success for the United States.

In April 2018, the US ignited mass and violent street protests by young people in many cities in Nicaragua. Becoming a convenient reason for the Washington strategists were the Nicaraguan government's plans to reform the social security system. The authorities invalidated their decision, but street riots came up with a bang. Which directly testifies to the fact that the true core of the crisis should be sought for somewhere else. The Nicaraguan authorities have accused the United States of carrying out a "soft coup" in the country.

The US has changed the classic pattern of overthrowing unwanted governments in Latin America, as it was before. Official Managua has provided evidence that Washington is orchestrating and funding the activities of Nicaragua's paramilitary groups that terrorize the population. The objective is to create an atmosphere of chaos and fear in the country, push the government to retaliatory actions, then accuse it of repression against the civilian population and in the end, present this as a trigger for regime change. This very kind of accusations can be seen today in the statements of the US President and the OAS.

In 2018, the Nicaraguan government curbed street riots. But the US has not given up on its goals. The American success in Bolivia clearly bolsters Washington's confidence that new attempts to undermine the situation in Nicaragua (as well as in Venezuela) can lead to the desired goal. All the fault of President Ortega (as well as that of President Morales of Bolivia and President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela) lies in the line pursued independently of the United States, friendly relations with Russia and Cuba. There is little doubt that Trump's statement and the OAS report will soon be followed by a new Nicaraguan Maidan to become a continuation of last year's failed attempt.

Amid the aggressive anti-Nicaraguan rhetoric, Washington's resurgence of the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance (the Rio Pact) of 1947 in September this year is very alarming. It is a NATO-type Alliance in Latin America. The depositary organization of the Rio Pact is the OAS. The day the pact was revived, the State Department said that "the United States and our partners have invoked the TIAR/Rio Treaty, which facilitates further collective action to confront the threat posed by the former regime of Nicolas Maduro to the Venezuelan people and to the region." This passage demonstrates that the US is eroding its ultimate responsibility for a possible direct invasion of Venezuela to overthrow Maduro among all the Latin American countries. But in the context of virtual threats against Nicaragua, it is logical to assume that the US can easily engage the Rio Pact to invade Nicaragua to overthrow President Ortega as well.

But so far, before the American presidential election, both Nicaragua and Venezuela should expect a Maidan-style unrest. And solid action, if the United States proves bold enough, may take place after the 2020 election campaign in the United States, regardless of who comes off with flying colors at the end of the day.