The Kidnapping of Venezuelan President Maduro

L. Palmer - 1/3/2026

Early in the morning of January 3rd, 2026, a large-scale airstrike was carried out by the United States military. Its goal: capture Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro. After an extremely brief attack that lasted less than an hour, the US had succeeded, with Maduro and his wife placed under arrest and being flown as prisoners to a New York detention center. The Trump administration has decided to “run” Venezuela until a more permanent solution can be found by supposedly fixing the vast infrastructure problems and corruption within the nation. This plan was sharply unexpected, with foreign officials and members of Congress alike scrambling to uncover the details and legality of so-called “Operation Absolute Resolve.” But why was this move deemed necessary, and what are the repercussions to come?

Firstly, it’s important to understand who Nicolás Maduro is and why he is so valuable to the United States government. Maduro had been president of Venezuela, a country in northern South America, since 2013. He is internationally regarded as an extremely corrupt leader who took excessive measures to stay in power, including tampering with the vote count of the country’s last election. This led to him unjustly staying in office despite losing by a wide margin to his opponent, Edmundo González. Essentially, Maduro oppresses his people and opponents in order to keep his political office. More importantly to the United States, though, Maduro has been alleged to have been involved in narco-terrorism.

Narco-terrorism is defined by the United States Department of Justice as an attempt made by a terrorist group to import drugs into a foreign nation in order to cause unrest within said nation. Basically, it’s when a group brings drugs into another country to cause issues for that country’s government. Venezuela has long been accused by the US of being run by a cartel known as the Cartel de los Soles (“Cartel of the Suns” in Spanish) since the 1990s. While it’s not a cartel as you’d typically think of it, a wide network of corruption in all levels of government has allowed drugs to be a prominent export of the country. Many low-level security officials, such as those at airports, are the makeup of this “cartel,” as they are typically the people who allow drugs to pass through the borders. However, many top Venezuelan government officials have also been alleged to be main members of the “cartel,” such as their Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello and, of course, Nicolás Maduro. After connecting the increase in cocaine imports to the United States to this Venezuelan group, President Trump and his administration named Cartel de los Soles a terrorist organization in 2020, and later put out arrest warrants for Maduro and Cabello. 

Both individuals have charges including narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy, and conspiracy to use and carry machine guns and destructive devices in furtherance of a drug crime. The latter of these comes from Maduro’s alleged association with the Zetas, a Colombian smuggling cartel, among others, and his supposed direction for his government to supply them with weapons. 

Those are the given reasons for why the Trump Administration called for his arrest, but was it legal? In short, likely not. Regardless of the fact that since 2019, Maduro has not been recognized by the US as a head of state, he still was one. He had power and jurisdiction in his nation, and under international law, forcefully removing a head of state from a sovereign nation is a violation of the core principles described within the U.N. charter. It could also be viewed as an act of war against Venezuela. On the national level, Trump failed to get approval from Congress, which is necessary for operations on foreign land as outlined by the War Powers Resolution. This means that if Trump does not give a reason for why this act was necessary by early Monday morning, it is a violation of his power at the national level.

Venezuela’s de facto president, former vice president Delcy Gonzalez, has pushed back against Trump and defends that Maduro is still in charge, demanding he be reinstated. Despite this, many Venezuelans celebrate his removal from power, while others criticize the methods used by the United States and call for Maduro’s return. This seems to be a theme, with many leaders worldwide agreeing with the removal of Maduro, but not the means by which it was accomplished. 

However, despite the claims made against him, Maduro’s drug allegations are not the reason for the capture of Venezuela. It’s abundantly clear, as told by Trump’s own press interview, that this attack was about resources. This violent act that killed several innocent Venezuelan civilians is not about American safety, it is not about fixing the rampant corruption in Venezuela, and it is not in any way, shape, or form to help fight narco-terrorism. It is about oil, and it is about stuffing the pockets of the Trump administration to the point of overflow. The US executive branch not only kidnapped a foreign leader within his own sovereign nation, but also inserted itself to be the new leading force of that nation. But when has the Trump administration exercised any ounce of sympathy or aid for the atrocious lack of human rights within Venezuela? When did they try to reach out with an olive branch and offer to assist in rebuilding the crippled infrastructure they so clearly seemed to see? The answer is never. They didn’t attempt to offer external aid or international support. Instead, the administration controlling the United States decided to break international law and essentially annex Venezuela so they can steal its rich oil reserves. We are living in a country that does not value the collective needs of people everywhere, but rather how many commas are in the bank accounts of the ultra-wealthy. This is a warning, a clear threat made by Trump himself, that if there’s something he wants, he will get it at any cost, whether that be taxpayer dollars or human lives. That is meant to scare foreign officials, but it should frighten you, too, to know what this country, based on the ideals of freedom and justice from tyranny, could so easily become. 

Citations

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Boyce, D. “Narco-Terrorism.” Office of Justice Programs, 1987, https://www.ojp.gov/ncjrs/virtual-library/abstracts/narco-terrorism. Accessed 3 January 2026.

Greene, Michael. “War Powers Resolution: Expedited Procedures in the House and Senate.” Congress.gov, 24 June 2025, https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/R47603. Accessed 3 January 2026.

Hayden, Jones. “EU urges respect for international law after US capture of Maduro.” Politico, 3 January 2026, https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-kallas-urges-respect-international-law-after-us-capture-maduro/. Accessed 3 January 2026.

Lucas, Ryan. “What are the charges against Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro?” NPR, 3 January 2026, https://www.npr.org/2026/01/03/nx-s1-5665617/venezuela-nicolas-maduro-charges. Accessed 3 January 2026.

Stennis Center for Public Service. “Military Power and Congress.” Stennis Center for Public Service, https://stennis.gov/new-brief-military-power-and-congress/. Accessed 3 January 2026.

Torpid, Konstantin, et al. “U.S. strikes Venezuela and says leader Maduro has been captured and flown out of the country.” PBS News, 3 January 2026, https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/us-strikes-venezuela-and-says-its-leader-maduro-has-been-captured-and-flown-out-of-the-country. Accessed 3 January 2026.

Trading Economics. “Venezuela Crude Oil Production.” Trading Economics, https://tradingeconomics.com/venezuela/crude-oil-production. Accessed 3 January 2026.