Venezuela, what does Trump want to achieve?
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The US military action to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is a violation of international law. The US claim that Maduro is a drug lord may be correct. That Nicolas Maduro lost the presidential election in 2024 but refused to abide by the will of the people is obvious. Yet another country does not have the right to take military action against another country to remove a leader. So, what is Trump’s real motive for taking out the president of Venezuela?
Venezuela and oil
It is probably the large oil reserves in Venezuela that Trump is drooling over. Trump wants to secure America’s access to oil in both the short and long term. Control of the country with the largest oil reserves in the world is important. The US does not have such control over the country today. Venezuela’s communist regime is in stark contrast to the US’s anti-communist philosophy. Venezuela’s strong political ties to Cuba, Russia and China mean that some form of control over the country’s vast resources is even more important.
The USA’s alleged fight to catch drug smugglers from Venezuela is a poor attempt to find a vicarious motive for its military action. The US has far bigger problems with drugs coming from Colombia and Mexico. Linking Nicolas Maduro to the drug cartel is perhaps correct. This is used as a pretext for the action.
Not regime change
Perhaps regime change is Donald Trump’s goal. If so, it is unlikely to happen. Venezuela is not a country ruled by the president alone, but by a regime. If the goal is a more US-friendly regime, the action must be described as a failure so far. As expected, the regime has elected an interim president in Maduro’s absence.
The statements from the Trump administration say that the US will govern Venezuela, without any further information on how this will happen. Will the country be governed directly from the US, or through a US-friendly government? As it stands, a president the US doesn’t like has been replaced by a new one who is exactly the same.
Desire to break Cuba
Cuba is the USA’s biggest foreign policy problem. The US wants the communist regime in Cuba to fall. Cuba is in economic trouble. Among other things, because imports of cheap Russian oil ran out. Venezuela now accounts for most of the oil deliveries to Cuba.
The cheap oil from the Soviet Union and later Russia meant that Cuba did not renew its oil-based power plants. Cuba is completely dependent on oil imports, especially from Venezuela. If the US gains control of Venezuela’s oil reserves, this will have disastrous consequences for Cuba. This is one of the reasons for the action.
Maria Corina Machado won the election in Venezuela
The election in the summer of 2024 was won by Maria Corina Machado. She won the Nobel Peace Prize for 2025 for her tireless fight for democratic rights in Venezuela and for uniting a divided opposition.
Military action to remove a government that refused to accept the people’s decision after a democratic election could be accepted by some. The condition would be that the rightful winner of the election is installed as president. But the US does not want Machado as president. Apparently because she is too weak and, according to Donald Trump, not popular enough.
Donald Trump’s desire is obvious. It is to turn Venezuela into a colony of some kind. For Trump, it’s money, oil and wealth that count. Democracy is less important to the US president.
Sources:
BBC: Trump says US will ‘run’ Venezuela and ‘fix oil infrastructure’
U.S. Department of war: Trump Announces U.S. Military’s Capture of Maduro