Since Trump took office for his second term, he has put Venezuela’s dictator Nicolas Maduro squarely in his crosshairs, pursuing a maximum pressure campaign against the regime.
*He accused Maduro of being behind destabilising activity in the Americas, including drug trafficking and illegal immigration to the US.Maduro was alleged to have used the security agencies to murder, maim and disappear thousands of his country men/women in brutal repression against free speech and civil rights including of political opposition. He reportedly deliberately stampeded millions more to flee the country, especially to the US, for fear of their very lives.
*In July, the US announced a $50m bounty on Maduro’s head, accusing him of being one of the largest narco-traffickers in the world.
*Trump’s administration declared Venezuelan gangs such as Tren de Aragua as terrorist organisations and began carrying out airstrikes against alleged drug traffickers in the Caribbean Sea.
*Soon, it began to seize Venezuelan oil tankers and build up its military presence in the waters surrounding the South American country.
*In late November, Trump in a telephone call gave Maduro an ultimatum to relinquish power, offering him safe passage out of the country.
*Maduro refused the offer, telling supporters in Venezuela that he did not want “a slave’s peace” and accusing the US of wanting control of his country’s oil reserves.
*Maduro repeatedly said Venezuela did not want war with the US, at one point dancing in front of Venezuelan students to the lyrics “no war, yes peace” and mimicking Trump’s double-fist pumping dance move.
*Trump was reportedly not amused, and the dancing is said to have contributed to the decision to remove him from power.
*Last Thursday, two days before his capture, Maduro said in a televised interview he would welcome US investment in the country’s oil sector.
*A newly unsealed US Justice Department indictment accuses Maduro of running a “corrupt, illegitimate government” fuelled by an extensive drug trafficking operation that flooded the US with thousands of tonnes of cocaine.
*PHOTO CAPTION: Maduro (left) and Trump…Who won? Who lost?
