Journalist Abdel Bari Atwan says Donald Trump’s reckless attempt to steal Venezuela’s oil wealth will spark resistance and will bring chaos to the United States itself.
The American president’s decision to invade Venezuela, destroy its capital Caracas with missiles, and kidnap its president Nicolás Maduro and his wife was an action unbefitting a leader of a country that claims to represent the free world.
Instead, it was behaviour more closely associated with criminal gangs and outlaws. From this perspective, responsibility for war crimes should rest with President Trump rather than President Maduro.
But Venezuela is only the beginning of a broader pattern. Today it is Venezuela, tomorrow Iran, and later Canada and Greenland. The objective is to seize the wealth of oil-rich nations and the valuable minerals beneath their lands, imposing economic tribute on governments and peoples.
At the same time, Trump is seeking the Nobel Peace Prize by claiming to have stopped multiple wars, an effort reportedly supported by certain allies.
America First?
Trump’s “America First” policy is driven by a desire to exploit Venezuela’s oil reserves, estimated at 303 billion barrels, the largest in the world. These resources are a means to address the United States’ national debt, which exceeds 43 trillion dollars.
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Trump believed President Maduro would submit to pressure and offer Venezuela’s oil wealth, similar to financial support allegedly provided by several Arab states during a short presidential visit.
President Maduro, however, refused to flee, surrender or be intimidated by American military pressure. He remained in the country among his supporters – a true working-class leader who once worked as a bus driver and rose to power through elections, succeeding former president Hugo Chávez.
The United States has suffered repeated defeats in foreign invasions, including in Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq. These outcomes are linked to the country’s growing national debt and large annual budget deficits. A similar defeat is a possibility in Venezuela, where the government has declared general mobilisation and a state of emergency in preparation for resistance.
One view is that the era of so-called “banana republics” in South America has ended. The continent’s populations are unwilling to submit to American pressure, with the possibility of new resistance leaders emerging in the tradition of figures such as Che Guevara, Fidel Castro, Hugo Chávez and Lula da Silva. South America must be unified and resilient, unable to abandon Venezuela.
The decision to act against Venezuela is a serious strategic mistake that could expose the United States to severe and possibly existential dangers, including internal disintegration and prolonged conflict. Unlike distant wars, South America is geographically close to U.S. territory and therefore more immediately consequential.
Finally, President Maduro should be contrasted with former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega, who lacked regional support. Maduro, by contrast, enjoys backing from the Venezuelan population and sympathy across South America.
The chaos of Trump’s actions in Venezuela and the Middle East will rebound against the United States, shaped by unresolved conflicts and the legacy of past wars.
This article first appeared in raialyoum.
