As a reporter covering international affairs, I've pieced together the unfolding drama in Venezuela following President Donald Trump's authorization of a daring U.S. military operation on January 3, 2026. Drawing from recent reports, this intervention—marking the largest U.S. military action in Latin America since the 1989 Panama invasion—captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife in a nighttime raid in Caracas. No shots were fired, no casualties reported, showcasing elite U.S. forces' precision. Maduro now sits in a Brooklyn jail, facing federal drug-trafficking charges, while his vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, has been sworn in as interim president and is cooperating with the Trump administration.
But beneath the headlines of oil riches and narco-crackdowns lies a complex web of geopolitical maneuvering, involving BRICS nations' encroachment and the strategic scramble for critical minerals. Let's unpack this, blending insights from key sources to reveal what's really at stake.
The operation began with helicopters swooping into the Venezuelan capital, extracting Maduro from his bed without resistance. Trump, in a weekend press conference, invoked the Monroe Doctrine—the 19th-century policy asserting U.S. dominance in the Western Hemisphere—to justify the move as a "police action" to bring a dictator to justice.
He emphasized Venezuela's descent into chaos under Maduro, who inherited and amplified the corruption of his predecessor, Hugo Chávez. Over 8-9 million Venezuelans have fled, creating one of history's largest migrations, with over 750,000 landing in the U.S. The regime's brutality—imprisoning and killing opponents—has turned the country into a haven for threats far beyond its borders.
Publicly, Trump has framed the intervention around two familiar villains: oil and narcotics. In an NBC interview, he declared the U.S. must "nurse Venezuela back to health" before any elections, arguing the nation's shattered state precludes fair voting. "We have to fix the country first. You can’t have an election. There’s no way the people could even vote," he said.
On oil, Trump eyes Venezuela's vast reserves—the world's largest—estimating a rebuild could take under 18 months with massive investments from U.S. oil companies, reimbursed via revenues or government funds. "A tremendous amount of money will have to be spent and the oil companies will spend it," he noted, signaling openness to private sector involvement in infrastructure revival.
This narrative echoes historical U.S. interests: American firms once dominated Venezuelan oil until nationalization in the 1980s under President Carlos Andrés Pérez, which led to debt crises amid plummeting prices.
Narcotics add another layer to the sell. Maduro's regime has become a hub for drug corridors, funneling synthetic opioids and other poisons that kill 60,000 Americans annually—a national emergency Trump has long decried. The capture ties directly to this, with Maduro indicted on trafficking charges. Yet, sources suggest this is more political theater than core motive. The operation spared oil refineries and production sites, like those under PDVSA, which reported no damage—hardly the hallmark of a resource grab.
If oil were paramount, why not act in 2019 during the Juan Guaidó uprising, when production hovered around 1.3 million barrels per day? Today's output languishes at 700,000 barrels, lacking the strategic punch of, say, Iraq's fields in 2003.
Dig deeper, and the real drivers emerge: a concerted push against BRICS adversaries—China, Russia, and Iran—who've turned Venezuela into their Western Hemisphere foothold. This convergence marks Venezuela as unique, the only spot where all three operate simultaneously, posing direct threats to U.S. security.
China buys 78% of Venezuelan oil and controls critical mineral extraction in the Orinoco Mining Arc, mining coltan, rare earths, and more, then laundering them through Colombian ports to its refineries, which dominate 91% of global processing.
Russia has embedded over 120 military advisers, training forces and integrating air defenses, radars, and Sukhoi fighters. Iran proxies like Hezbollah and Hamas train there, while Tehran sets up drone factories within striking distance of U.S. soil—about 2,000 km away.
Trump's team dispelled claims of advanced Chinese defenses detecting U.S. stealth tech during the raid, but the operation exposed vulnerabilities in adversary systems. Strikes hit command centers like Fort Tiuna, airbases, ports, and telecoms, degrading military capabilities and capturing key officials to dismantle these networks.
Russia runs ghost ships to evade sanctions, and Cuba gets all its oil from Venezuela, amplifying the ripple effects. The November National Security Strategy subtly reasserts the Monroe Doctrine, omitting direct nods to China, Russia, or Iran but focusing on ousting foreign interference from the Americas.
As one source puts it: "The United States cannot allow key geographies to become bases for adversaries who would threaten our trade routes and our safety."
Geopolitically, this is a warning shot to Beijing and Moscow: Selling weapons and influence doesn't guarantee dominance when tested. By expelling these players, the U.S. secures access to critical minerals—tantalum, antimony, cobalt—vital for weapons systems, where America is 100% import-reliant on a dozen such resources.
The $7.5 billion allocated under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act underscores minerals' elevation to national security priority, mirroring Iraq's oil logic but for a new era.
Trump's inner circle—Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, and Vice President JD Vance—will oversee U.S. involvement, with Trump as final arbiter.
Rubio's fluent Spanish and ties to Rodríguez signal diplomatic continuity amid the takeover. Trump insists the U.S. will "run" Venezuela temporarily, pairing "toughness with a plan for recovery."
This includes governance reforms, honest partnerships, and rebuilding institutions to stem migration and corruption.
Critics argue the oil-narco narrative is "pure theater," providing domestic cover for Pentagon-driven necessities.
Trump's role? Authorize what's already deemed essential. Yet, Venezuelans deserve more than looting; they need a path home. As the dust settles, this action could reshape the hemisphere, denying adversaries a beachhead while bolstering U.S. supply chains. But success hinges on execution—will it heal or exploit? Only time will tell in this high-stakes game.
Editorial comments expressed in this column are the sole opinion of the writer.
