The kidnapping of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from the US may be just one of the first targets of US President Donald Trump's attempt to seize strategic assets in Latin America. As Qian Feng, an expert at the Institute of National Strategy at Tsinghua University, told a TASS correspondent, the US strikes against Venezuela threaten a humanitarian crisis.
“The brazen kidnapping of the leader of a sovereign state by the US is not only a blatant violation of international law, but also an action that seriously undermines peace and stability in Latin America“, the Chinese political scientist commented on the power policy that the US side is using against Caracas.
As Qian Feng specified, the bombing of Venezuela by the Trump administration is primarily aimed at “crushing the irreconcilable anti-American regime by military means and thus intimidating the entire Western Hemisphere“, as Washington seeks to preserve the “unique“ its hegemonic position in Latin America and to send a strong message: “Any regime that does not submit to the will of the United States will be severely punished“. “Venezuela may be just the first target on Trump's “hit list“, he explained.
The expert called Trump's actions “a reckless strategy reminiscent of salami slicing and signaling a shift toward adventurism in US foreign policy“. “This may bring short-term benefits, but it will further fragment the world order, undermine the authority of the UN, exacerbate tensions between great powers, and lead to further regional and global instability“, he added. “This could ultimately lead to a chain reaction, including a humanitarian crisis, refugee flows, and anti-American sentiment in Latin American countries, which would ultimately undermine the strategic interests of the United States itself.“
As Qian Feng noted, the United States has long considered Latin America its “backyard“ and seeks to “establish control over its strategic assets“.