"It was an extraordinary beginning to the new year: A deadly United States military operation on Venezuelan soil. The abduction of the country's longtime leader, Nicolas Maduro. But in the three weeks since the operation, widely condemned as an affront to international law and a potential opening salvo in the administration of Donald Trump's stated goal of preeminence in the Western Hemisphere, only a vague framework of Washington's plan for the South American country has emerged."
"Maduro has sat in prison in New York since the January 3 operation, awaiting trial on drug trafficking and so-called conspiracy to commit narcoterrorism charges. But many of the circumstances leading up to his abduction have endured. A massive portion of the US's military arsenal has remained deployed off the coast of Venezuela. A blockade on US-sanctioned oil tankers has stayed in place. The Trump administration has promised to continue strikes on alleged drug smuggling boats in the Caribbean,"
A US military operation on January 3 resulted in the capture and detention of Nicolas Maduro, who remains in New York awaiting drug-trafficking and narcoterrorism charges. Significant US pressure persists through naval deployments off Venezuela's coast, a blockade on sanctioned oil tankers, and continued strikes against alleged drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean. The administration signals possible further land operations while emphasizing coordination with interim authorities and downplaying direct opposition-led government installation. Relative calm in Venezuela overlays deep anxieties, with active leadership faultlines that could produce rapid change depending on US policy choices and domestic responses.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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