Whether you agree with the recent actions of the current administration in the United States government, it is undeniable that certain decisions made as of late have come as a shock to the nation, one of the most notable being the capture of Nicolás Maduro, the current president of Venezuela. Though you may have heard whisperings about this through the news, family, friends, or even social media, not many know what this major headline actually entails for the futures of both countries.
For starters, I took it upon myself to research the initial reasoning behind the abduction of Maduro. The explanation for the capture is an upcoming trial in the Southern District of New York on the basis of cocaine trafficking, narco-terrorism, and the keeping of machine guns/destructive devices against the U.S. Although this sounds beneficial for both the United States and Venezuela, as it removes a potentially corrupt figurehead from the highest office in the country, it nonetheless leaves a country in fear of what will come next.
According to the United States’ president, Donald Trump, the logical next step is for the U.S. to take over running Venezuela during this tumultuous time. A large portion of the United States’ newfound desire for involvement in the country’s political state is the fact that it is extremely wealthy in terms of crude oil, holding the world’s most expansive proven oil reserves, and earning the nickname of “The Millionaire of America.” The United States was certainly privy to this information ahead of time, as proven by Trump’s statements that Venezuela’s oil industry had been “stolen” from the United States and that—through U.S. control over the country—it will focus heavily on fixing the oil infrastructure and bettering refining and extracting operations. In reality, in 1976, the Venezuelan government simply ceased supplying the Venezuelan oil to foreign companies that used it, which included those within the United States, such as Exxon, Shell, and Chevron, who had previously been allowed to sell Venezuelan oil, considering they provided royalties to the Venezuelan government.
Additionally, the statement that the United States would be governing Venezuela for the time being is largely misleading. Similarly to the U.S., Venezuela operates as a presidential republic, meaning that it has a vice president to step into the role of president should anything happen. Therefore, the interim president for the time being is the previous Vice President Delcy Rodríguez. Rodríguez has been publicly backed by the Trump Administration. The notion that the U.S. will govern Venezuela stems from the statement made that the country will not be holding elections within the next 30 days, and therefore the United States will continue backing Delcy Rodríguez until it has deemed the nation will have a “safe, proper, and judicious transition.” Since the U.S. stands in a position of immense power over the future of Venezuela, the government has been very clear in its intentions to control and sway governmental decisions made by the current acting Venezuelan government in order to benefit the United States rather than simply taking over full administrative control over the country.
The longstanding question since Maduro’s capture on the 3rd of January has been how long this situation will continue. As stated by President Trump, the situation will likely span at least months and more than likely last for years, depending on the needs and well-being of both countries. All things considered, this news—although scary—will likely have a very minimal effect on the daily lives of American citizens and may bring some justice to the country of Venezuela as they begin to focus on improving their current corrupt political circumstances.
