In the aftermath of U.S. strikes and the capture of Maduro, Venezuelans are struggling to understand what just happened — and what might come next.

Updated January 4, 2026

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In November, the White House published what it called a “Trump Corollary” to the Monroe Doctrine — a 19th-century document asserting America’s hemispheric dominance — that promised to “restore American preeminence in the Western Hemisphere.”

Carolina Jiménez Sandoval, the Venezuelan president of the Washington Office on Latin America, said she could only make sense of Saturday’s stunning events in the context of the new document.

“The idea that you can take the most powerful man in the country and then see him surrendered to U.S. troops sends a very powerful message across Latin America that the U.S. is willing to go through with its threats,” she said. “They’re not saying they’re going to work through alliances; they’re saying they're going to impose their will through any means, including military power.”