Venezuela faces its most tense Christmas yet

"Christmas follows a routine: shopping, dinner, gifts, family celebrations that vary from humble to lavish, reflecting a country growing increasingly unequal, like Venezuela. The holiday season in Caracas in 2025 masks what is on the minds of many Venezuelans. Festivities are overshadowed by the greatest geopolitical tensions the country has faced in decades, amid the largest recent deployment of U.S. military assets a volatile threat hanging over Venezuela's Caribbean border."

"The sense that something could happen this time for real, that chronic uncertainty Venezuelans have long felt over the prolonged political crisis, has shaped this Christmas. It is not openly discussed, at least not without circumspection, with the coded language of censorship. That is why concern over U.S. attacks and seizures of sanctioned oil tankers in the Caribbean which forced the United Nations Security Council to convene on December 23 goes unnoticed on the streets."

"On December 23, as ambassadors gave their speeches in New York, a manicurist in Caracas finished painting a client's nails red and confessed her hope: If what we're all waiting for happens, we'll have a good year. If not, we still have to keep going, she says, brushing on the polish. That's right, my dear, replies the older client. The coded conversation reveals what surveys showed before last year's presidential election: most of the country wants political change and is still waiting for it."

Christmas routines of shopping, dinner, gifts and family gatherings continue across Caracas amid stark inequality. Holiday decorations and celebrations coexist with deep anxiety as the country faces the largest recent deployment of U.S. military assets and heightened geopolitical tensions along Venezuela's Caribbean border. U.S. drones, fighter-jet patrols, and seizures of sanctioned oil tankers have intensified fears and prompted a U.N. Security Council meeting. Public conversations often use coded language and circumspection. Many Venezuelans focus on economic survival, worrying about the rising dollar and stretching incomes. Surveys indicate widespread desire for political change while people try to carry on with daily life.

Read at english.elpais.com