Why Is the U.S. Confronting Venezuela?

U.S. threats and military moves toward Venezuela have persisted amid regional reactions and growing strategic ties between Caracas and rivals Beijing and Moscow; analysts warn that if the Trump administration fails to meet its objectives in Venezuela the situation could escalate into serious conflict, with U.S. accusations including drug-trafficking claims and concerns over Venezuela’s vast oil reserves claims Caracas rejects as pretexts while Russia and Venezuela sign a strategic partnership covering energy, mining and broader cooperation and Caracas accuses the CIA of plotting a false-flag incident to justify U.S. military action.

Recently Venezuela’s foreign minister warned that a CIA-orchestrated false-flag operation against a U.S. naval vessel is being planned so that the incident can be blamed on Venezuela and be used to justify a U.S. military attack.

The U.S. criticizes Venezuela’s relations with China and Russia, and many of its actions are reactions to those ties, but Putin signed a law on strategic partnership with Venezuela. In fact, the presidents of Russia and Venezuela signed an agreement on strategic partnership and cooperation that paves the way for deeper collaboration in the economy, energy, mining and other strategic sectors.

The agreement also states that the two sides strongly oppose coercive unilateral restrictive measures, including extraterritorial actions that violate the U.N. Charter and other established norms and principles of international law.

Expansion of Strategic Cooperation between Russia and Venezuela
Moscow and Caracas are also making efforts to confront colonial legacies and historical falsification, condemning racism, genocide and other crimes.

Continuing tensions between the United States and Venezuela, Trinidad and Tobago recently hosted a U.S. warship that has been involved in controversial attacks on Venezuelan boats in the Caribbean under the pretext of counter-narcotics operations. The U.S. warship USS Gravely, equipped with guided missiles, entered Trinidad and Tobago ostensibly to participate in a joint naval exercise.

In response to Trinidad and Tobago opening its waters to a U.S. warship, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro announced his country would suspend an energy cooperation agreement with Trinidad and Tobago.

The U.S. Issue with Venezuela Is an Oil War
Farshid Bagherian, an international affairs expert, told ISNA in analyzing recent developments in Latin America that the United States continues to follow the Monroe Doctrine dating back to 1823; in practice Americans treat the Western Hemisphere as their sphere and intervene globally when they choose.

He said the problem with Venezuela is not Maduro personally or Chavismo’s ideology—Chavismo is based on resistance to imperial rule and has resonated across Latin America—yet many other countries such as Argentina remain largely under U.S. influence.

Bagherian argued that the U.S. issue with Venezuela is that the U.S. does not reap the full profits from Venezuela’s oil sales, transfers and production, calling the confrontation essentially an oil war and asserting that the U.S. might even pursue the overthrow of Maduro. He pointed to instances such as awarding a Nobel Prize to an opposition figure as part of a designed strategy, and claimed a plan to remove Venezuela’s legitimately elected government is in place.

He added that the question must be asked why the U.S. is pushing for serious confrontation with Venezuela: the country produces and exports roughly 55 percent of its oil and holds some of the world’s largest oil reserves while the U.S. benefits little from that output, and China is the largest foreign investor.

Trump’s Doctrine Is Unreasonable
Commenting on reasons for U.S. hostility toward Venezuela, Bagherian said reviving the Monroe Doctrine, limiting China’s access and confronting Britain’s stance are among Trump’s motivations for political and military moves against Venezuela. He noted Trump often compares himself to past presidents but lacks a coherent doctrine, calling his approach irrational and arguing that he is reviving the Monroe Doctrine to confront other doctrines.

Bagherian warned that the Venezuela issue is serious and a military intervention by U.S. forces remains a possibility; the U.S. could attempt another regime-change operation.

U.S. Actions toward Venezuela as Bullying
He also said U.S. claims that Venezuela is involved in drug trafficking must be proven, but that U.S. actions constitute bullying aimed at securing oil-related goals. Wherever oil exists, the U.S. and Britain seek influence—Britain favors partnerships while the U.S. aims to control resources and even oil prices. Since Venezuela has shifted large-scale oil dealings toward China, it is naturally unwelcome to the United States.