Spanish police link Zapatero network to control of gold and nickel mines in Venezuela
Spain's UDEF financial crime unit links Zapatero to the control of mines in Venezuela. We discuss in the forum whether it is the end of an era or just another smokescreen.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
UDEF turns the spotlight on the Zapatero network and Venezuelan gold
Spain's UDEF (the financial crime unit of the National Police) has linked the Zapatero network to the control of gold and nickel mines in Venezuela to trade in what its reports call yellow gold. While the official narrative tries to downplay the scale of the affair, in the forum we ask ourselves whether this is the missing piece to understand his inexplicable decision to give up his salary on the Council of State.
Legitimate business or the end of a political career?
The shadow of doubt grows when the former prime minister's activities are examined. While some users argue that trading in mining resources abroad is not a crime in itself, most of the forum points to fiscal opacity. The key is not the legality of the mine, but the origin of the income and the money trail. There is a sceptical consensus: nobody gives up a salary of 125,000 euros a year to earn less money, unless the source of income is, to put it mildly, creative.
From Pollo Carvajal to theories about the Banco de España's gold
The debate has revived old suspicions, from the statements of Pollo Carvajal to the curious timing coincidence with the sale of Banco de España gold carried out by Solbes in 2007. Could we be looking at a closed circle of interests that goes beyond domestic politics? Irony is the dominant note: the suspicion that yellow gold is only the first link in a chain of favours that, according to the most critical voices, was already common knowledge in the media years ago.
Related discussions in the forum
Spain's UDEF (the financial crime unit of the National Police) has linked the Zapatero network to the control of gold and nickel mines in Venezuela to trade in what its reports call yellow gold. While the official narrative tries to downplay the scale of the affair, in the forum we ask ourselves whether this is the missing piece to understand his inexplicable decision to give up his salary on the Council of State.
Legitimate business or the end of a political career?
The shadow of doubt grows when the former prime minister's activities are examined. While some users argue that trading in mining resources abroad is not a crime in itself, most of the forum points to fiscal opacity. The key is not the legality of the mine, but the origin of the income and the money trail. There is a sceptical consensus: nobody gives up a salary of 125,000 euros a year to earn less money, unless the source of income is, to put it mildly, creative.
From Pollo Carvajal to theories about the Banco de España's gold
The debate has revived old suspicions, from the statements of Pollo Carvajal to the curious timing coincidence with the sale of Banco de España gold carried out by Solbes in 2007. Could we be looking at a closed circle of interests that goes beyond domestic politics? Irony is the dominant note: the suspicion that yellow gold is only the first link in a chain of favours that, according to the most critical voices, was already common knowledge in the media years ago.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (14 replies).
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