American Chinook helicopters and Apache gunships attacked military sites across Caracas overnight, with explosions lighting up the sky. Hours later, Donald Trump announced that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife had been captured and flown out of the country, according to officials.
However, a military analyst has described the invasion as “strategically mad”, arguing that the violation of international law benefits only Russia and China. The analyst said the operation – based on unsubstantiated claims that Venezuela is a narco-terrorist state – echoes the false pretext used to justify the 2003 Iraq war.
Nato allies are said to be horrified, but the analyst predicted continued deference from the alliance’s leadership. The analyst drew a direct line between Trump’s actions and those of Vladimir Putin, noting that the US president has now “aped the behaviour” of his Russian counterpart by attacking a neighbour without international support.
The commentary also highlighted Trump’s recent threats to annex Canada and Greenland, and his National Security Strategy’s reference to Nato nations being “overwhelmed by non-Europeans”, a phrase the analyst likened to the “Great Replacement” conspiracy theory. The analyst warned that the world is now split into three spheres: the western hemisphere under US control, Europe for Russia, and the rest for China.
The analyst concluded by quoting W.B. Yeats’ “The Second Coming”: “The centre cannot hold; mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.” The piece urged Europe to take a stand but predicted it would remain passive as the crisis unfolds.
