As many already know, the dictator of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, was taken from his country via U.S. intervention after many disputes and tensions between the countries. As mentioned in last month’s story on the conflict, the suspected drug boats smuggling narcotics are a big factor in this conflict.
On January 20th, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order labeling criminal organizations and drug cartels as “foreign terrorist organizations,” making the government view them similarly to ISIS. One of these Venezuelan criminal organizations, known as “Tren de Aragua,” was suspected of working with Nicolas Maduro. However, U.S. intelligence agencies have disputed Trump’s claim that Maduro is orchestrating drug trafficking and illegal migration into the U.S.
As multiple agencies cracked down on drug and human trafficking, by August 20th, the naval force in the Caribbean grew to 6,000 soldiers, multiple ships, a submarine (somewhere off the coast of South America), and a variety of aircraft.
From September 2025 to January 2026, the death toll from the boat strikes rose to 126. One of the boats affected was an oil tanker carrying two million barrels of heavy crude oil.
This made Maduro understandably angry, and in a January 1st, 2026 state television interview, he stated that the U.S. wants to force a government change and gain access to its vast oil reserves. This would later be proven right in the days to come.
On January 3rd, 2026, a large-scale strike was conducted across Caracas, Venezuela. Maduro was found and flown to America to face charges for various alleged illegal activities.
Since the capture of Maduro, the U.S. has been forming plans for Venezuela. With the amount of time that has passed, the information is sparse, but what we do know is that Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced a three-phase plan for Venezuela and its people.
The three phases of this plan include the U.S. having full control over the sale and prices of Venezuelan oil. The U.S. will control the proceeds from these earnings rather than Venezuela’s authorities to prevent corruption. 30-50 million barrels of oil will be sold on the open market at a fair price, and the money earned will be distributed in a way that benefits the ordinary people of Venezuela.
Americans also have concerns about their tax dollars and the possible failure of this grand plan.
“It’s not going to cost us anything,” said Rubio, “we are certainly better off today in Venezuela than we were four weeks ago.”
The pursuit of stabilization, recovery, and transition is key after the corruption of dictator Maduro swept Venezuela for so long. Economic and humanitarian issues have been real in Venezuela, but because of the strict leader, many news networks were silenced or shut down, meaning the common citizen wouldn’t really have much knowledge, and tragedies could continue to happen daily.
In the end, is it simply a fight for oil, or a true fight against a corrupt leader? As far as the future for Venezuela goes, it’s unclear; it simply has not been long enough to discuss how Venezuela has been truly affected after U.S. intervention.
