By THE EDITORS of WORKERS’ VOICE

In the early morning of Jan. 3, U.S. Special Forces bombed Venezuela and conducted a raid on the Fort Tiuna military installation, the residence of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores. Agents of U.S. imperialism kidnapped the couple and took them to New York City, where they will be tried on murky charges having to do with drug trafficking. Over 150 aircraft were sent into Caracas and other cities, allegedly striking both civilian and military sites. Reports from Venezuela state that at least 80 people were killed in the attack; the figure includes 32 Cuban citizens.

The reason for the attack has nothing to do with the “war on drugs” or building “democracy” in Venezuela. The “Donroe Doctrine” is the order of the day. The massive display of military force was meant to remind all semi-colonial governments of the ability of the United States to strike anywhere and depose any leader. The coup operation, backed by heavy firepower, is one of the most arrogant displays of Trumpian “dealmaking,” and the newly minted “Donroe Doctrine’s” motto of “peace through strength,” since the new administration took office.

Soon after news of the attack became known in the United States, protest demonstrations were organized in cities all over the country. Countering U.S. aggression does not mean giving political support to Maduro. There is an indication that Maduro was willing to make large concessions to the U.S. According to The New York Times, in October, Maduro “offered to open up all existing and future oil and gold projects to American companies, give preferential contracts to American businesses, reverse the flow of Venezuelan oil exports from China to the United States, and slash his country’s energy and mining contracts with Chinese, Iranian and Russian firms.” After this report was released, the U.S. cut off diplomatic relations.

Trump asserted in a Jan. 3 press conference that the United States is “going to run the country until a proper transition can take place.” He stated that the transition would be led by the people “behind” him, referring to Rubio and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. Imposing an imperial junta is common for the United States, from PROMESA in Puerto Rico to the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq.

In a surprising rebuke to longtime anti-Chavismo figures, Trump did not support opposition leader María Corina Machado, saying, “She doesn’t have the support or the respect within the country; she’s a nice woman but doesn’t have the respect.”

While Trump and Rubio asserted that kidnapping Maduro most likely marked the end of military operations, Trump also stated that a second, larger attack might be necessary if the U.S. encountered any resistance; he indicated a willingness to put “boots on the ground.”

The U.S. war machine will not be satisfied with all of Venezuela’s oil. More important is solidifying control of the whole hemisphere, with special concern toward displacing the economic and political incursions into the region by China, which has been taking 80% of Venezuela’s oil exports. The attack and coup are a warning to Cuba as much as Venezuela.

The fates of workers, students, and oppressed people in Venezuela and in the United States are intimately connected. As the U.S. sanctioned, threatened, and ultimately invaded Venezuela for the benefit of Big Oil and the banks, those same ruling-class forces are decimating the gains of the civil rights, labor, and other social movements in this country. Scapegoating working-class Venezuelan migrants and sending them to CECOT to be tortured are all part of the ruling-class propaganda campaign that violates Venezuelan sovereignty and threatens every one of its residents.

Instead of allowing an international order based on domination and violence to continue, the working class and oppressed masses worldwide need to unite, mobilize, and organize around a program based on solidarity in the fight against imperialism. They must demand that the U.S. dismantle its military bases throughout Latin America and stay out of the affairs of Venezuela and other Latin American countries. Only the people of Venezuela—and not U.S. imperialism—have the right to decide the future of their country.

(Photo) Soon after news broke of the U.S. attack on Jan. 3, protesters hit the streets in Philadelphia. (Yong Kim / Philadelphia Inquirer)