NicaNotes

October 23, 2025

New Webinar on Oct. 26^th!

Discover how Nicaragua saves lives before, during and after disasters and how nationwide drills train more than a million citizens.

Register for Nica Webinar: bit.ly/NicaOct26

Stop US Aggression against Venezuela! / ¡Alto a la Agresión Estadounidense contra Venezuela!

[The Nicaragua Solidarity Coalition—of which the Nicaragua Network/Alliance for Global Justice is a member—has released an important statement on Venezuela. You can also find it in both Spanish and English here.]

The Nicaragua Solidarity Coalition demands an end to US aggression against Venezuela, which is on the brink of outright war. Any escalation in the violence against Venezuela will cause more suffering and deaths in the South American country, destabilize the region, and endanger all countries seeking a path independent from US domination, especially Cuba and Nicaragua.

US actions indicate a strike on Venezuela is imminent:

After the Trump administration designated international drug-trafficking groups as “foreign terrorist organizations” (FTOs), without any evidence, it accused Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro of being their ringleader. By July, a “secret directive” authorized military operations against FTOs at sea and on foreign soil.

In August, the administration raised its illegal “bounty” on President Maduro to US$50 million and launched a massive naval deployment off the coast of Venezuela, which includes nuclear capable submarines and jets and quickly grew to 10,000 troops.

On September 2, the US blew up the first of four or five alleged “drug” boats in international waters off of Venezuela, committing extrajudicial executions.

By mid-September, the Pentagon notified Congress under the War Powers Resolution that US forces were engaged in a “non-international armed conflict” with drug cartels.

On October 1, the Defense/War Department issued a “confidential memo” and told Congress that the US was engaged in armed conflict.

On October 6, Trump ended back-channel diplomatic contacts with Venezuela, which had been essential since the rupture of diplomatic relations in 2019. That same day, Venezuela informed the US of a thwarted plan by Venezuelan right-wing extremists to plant explosives at the US embassy in an attempted false-flag operation.

On October 10, Maria Corina Machado—a US-paid, violent, Zionist, extreme right-wing Venezuelan political opposition figure—received the Nobel Prize after being endorsed by Secretary Marco Rubio, in a clear a maneuver to manufacture consent for regime change in Venezuela.

We must not be fooled by this perversion of the peace prize or the countless unfounded accusations against Venezuela and its democratically elected president. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, and even the DEA, report that Venezuela is not a drug trafficking country, nor are Cuba or Nicaragua. Like its lies about migrants, the Trump administration has fabricated the “threat” posed by Venezuela. The real reason the administration is pushing for war against Venezuela is to regain control of its vast resources—including the world’s largest oil reserves.

We demand an end to US impunity and the withdrawal of US troops and war materiel from the Caribbean before the situation escalates any further. We vehemently object to the deployment of nuclear capable vessels in a region which, in response to the Cuban Missile Crisis, declared itself a nuclear-free zone in 1967, and which the US committed itself to respect in 1971. We demand respect for international law and the sovereignty of nations. The people of Venezuela and the rest of Latin America and the Caribbean must be allowed to live in peace with the form of government they have chosen.

Hands Off Venezuela! Venezuela is Hope! Venezuela is not a threat!

US Hands Off Latin America and the Caribbean!

ADDENDUM: Since this statement was issued, Venezuela Analysis reported that, on Oct. 15, the Trump administration authorized the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to carry out lethal covert operations in Venezuela. The US military also struck another boat in the Caribbean. A couple of days later, news reports described a US attack on a submersible that killed two more and had two survivors who were repatriated to Ecuador and Colombia. With at least two subsequent attacks, the Guardian has the total at 34 killed as of Oct. 22^nd but its figures are confusing!

Please take this urgent action from the Alliance for Global Justice to STOP THE WAR on Venezuela:

There is a bipartisan effort to force a vote in the Senate that would require Congressional approval for military action against Venezuela. We urge people to send an email to their Senators as well as to call, visit, and demonstrate at Senate offices to demand NO WAR with Venezuela! Click below to send an email!

Demand that your Senators vote NO WAR with Venezuela!

Briefs

By Nan McCurdy

2026 Budget Guarantees Social Welfare and Development

The Sandinista government has allocated 65.4 percent of projected revenues in next year’s budget to programs and actions aimed at combating poverty. This represents US$2.99 billion, said Óscar Mojica, Minister of Finance and Public Credit. The bill establishes social and economic priorities, including public investment, social spending, strengthening the production chain, care for children and adolescents, gender policies, development of the Caribbean Coast, and citizen protection and security, among others. Mojica presented the 2026 General Budget bill to the National Assembly, which amounts to US$5.36 billion.

Social investment and the transportation sector account for 70.8 percent of the total budget. According to the official, revenues are projected to be in the order of US$4.7 billion. Of the total amount allocated to social investment, the largest share went to the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure and the Ministry of Education. This reaffirms Nicaragua’s commitment to the well-being of families and the social development of the country. (La Primerisima, 21 October, 2025)

State-of-the-Art Soccer Stadium Now Complete

Authorities announced that construction of the new Miguel “Chocorrón” Buitrago Soccer Stadium has been fully completed. The sports field was built to all the quality standards established by FIFA and its regional affiliate CONCACAF with the aim of hosting national and international children’s and youth tournaments. The stadium has seating capacity for 2,000 spectators, a FIFA PRO-certified artificial turf field, dressing rooms with bathrooms for players, changing rooms for referees, bleachers, boxes, a media booth area, and public restrooms. It also has cafeterias, artificial lighting, a professional sound system, areas for convenience stores, and ample parking for the public. See photos: https://radiolaprimerisima.com/nuevo-estadio-miguel-chocorron-cumple-con-estandares-internacionales/ (La Primerisima, 16 October 2025)

Sandinista Government to Give Vouchers to 63,000 High School Graduates

The Ministry of Education will give 63,000 vouchers to students graduating from high school in public schools throughout the country. The bonuses will be handed out by the presidents of the Federation of Secondary School Students (FES) and the municipal coordinators of the local 19 de Julio Sandinista Youth Organization during celebrations in all schools from November 24 to 27 in recognition of the efforts of each student preparing to enter universities and technical schools. The delivery of this grant reaffirms the will of the Sandinista government to bring improvements for Nicaraguan families. (La Primerisima, 16 October 2025)

Sandinista Government Sends Special Greetings to British Solidarity

On Oct. 18, the Government of Reconciliation and National Unity delivered a special greeting at the Annual Meeting of the Nicaragua Solidarity Campaign Action Group (NSCAG) in London. The message was delivered by the Co-Minister of the Exterior, Valdrak Jaentschke. Here are some excerpts from the message:

“It is a special honor for me to address you at this Annual General Assembly and to convey the Fraternal Embrace, as Revolutionary Sisters and Brothers, from our Co-Presidents Comandante Daniel Ortega Saavedra and Compañera Rosario Murillo Zambrana.… We want to express our gratitude for the solidarity, the affection and the constant work you have done for so many years to inform, clarify and defend the Sandinista Popular Revolution. You have remained firm and tireless, walking alongside the Nicaraguan People and the revolutions and progressive forces around the world, despite the systematic media campaigns to discredit our popular and anti-imperialist process, attempting to minimize the enormous and significant advances the Revolution has made in favor of the humble, working people of Nicaragua.

“Nicaragua demonstrated that a Popular Revolution is capable of improving the lives of its People by fostering development, restoring the rights that were taken away by the empire, the oligarchy and its neoliberal model, while remaining firm and loyal to the Sandinista Revolutionary political thinking from which it emerged. The fight against poverty is the central element of the National Human Development Plan, our Plan to Fight Poverty, which firmly upholds free health care and education as fundamental rights; access to basic services such as water, electricity, roads, hospitals, clinics and schools that reach rural communities, uniting the country. The country’s production and income increased year after year, while the rights of women, youth, workers, Indigenous and Afro-descendant Peoples, and the entire Nicaraguan People prospered under the leadership of the Sandinista Front….

“At this meeting, we remember, celebrate and express our gratitude for your firmness, perseverance and permanence on the side of the Popular Movement, on the side of the Sandinista Popular Revolution.

“With much love. With much gratitude. We continue building the Revolution. October 18, 2025. To see the entire message in English or Spanish: https://www.el19digital.com/articulos/ver/169876-mensaje-del-grun-en-la-asamblea-general-anual-del-grupo-de-accion-de-la-campana-de-solidaridad-con-nicaragua To see you tube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GM7lT7ipIDU&t=61s (El 19 Digital, 18 October 2025)

Evangelicals in Dominican Republic say Nicaragua Promotes Peace

On October 18, the Eleventh Congress on the Family and the Culture of Peace was held in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, organized by the Dominican organization Equity and Social Justice Foundation. Leaders from various evangelical churches gathered at the event in the Dominican Republic and highlighted Nicaragua as a country that promotes peace. Representatives from Nicaragua explained their country’s model of participation, faith, family and community.  Pastor Feliciano Lacen, president of the Dominican Council of Evangelical Unity (CODUE), and Reverend Fidel Lorenzo, president of the Equity and Social Justice Foundation, highlighted the progress made in Nicaragua in terms of a culture of peace, noting that as a country that practices the solidarity taught by Christ, it is a model to be followed in the region. The event was attended by some 150 Dominican families, who applauded Nicaragua’s participation in the congress. (La Primerisima, 18 October 2025)

Fifth Gold Medal for Nicaragua in Central American Games

Candelaria Resano was crowned Central American champion in women’s shortboard surfing at the Central American Games in Guatemala. Shortboard surfboards are high-performance boards that generate maximum speed, grip, and maneuverability. They are reserved for experienced surfers and for waves of respectable size and power. See photos: https://radiolaprimerisima.com/quinta-medalla-de-oro-para-nicaragua-en-centroamericanos/ (La Primerisima, 21 October 2025)