ISLAMABAD: The next seventy-two hours stand as pivotal for globalgeopolitics, following United States military strikes on Venezuela thatreportedly led to the capture of President Nicolás Maduro. Venezuelapossesses the world’s largest proven oil reserves, estimated at over threehundred three billion barrels according to recent OPEC and industry data.This vast resource, primarily heavy crude from the Orinoco Belt, has longbeen central to international energy strategies despite productionconstraints from sanctions and infrastructure challenges.
United States forces conducted large-scale operations, including airstrikeson key sites in Caracas and the seizure of oil-related facilities. Reportsconfirm explosions at military complexes and the subsequent announcement byPresident Donald Trump that Maduro and his wife were detained and flown outfor facing charges in America. This escalation marks a dramatic shift inWashington’s approach, moving from sanctions to direct intervention amidclaims of countering drug trafficking and restoring order.
Analysts interpret the move as aimed at securing influence over Venezuelanoil, which could alter global energy dynamics significantly. Control overthese reserves would provide the United States with an alternative sourceof heavy crude, reducing dependence on Gulf suppliers. In the context ofongoing tensions with Iran, this buffer could mitigate risks from potentialdisruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, through which twenty percent of globaloil transits daily.
Such dominance would enable greater sway over oil pricing and flows,bolstering the petrodollar system where transactions predominantly occur inUnited States dollars. This mechanism has underpinned American financialhegemony since the nineteen seventies, ensuring demand for the currency andfacilitating deficit financing. Securing Venezuelan output could counterefforts by nations like Russia and China to trade oil in alternativecurrencies.
Venezuela’s reserves dwarf those of Saudi Arabia, at approximately twohundred sixty-seven billion barrels, and Iran, with around two hundred ninebillion. Yet production hovers below one million barrels per day due toyears of underinvestment and United States sanctions imposed since twothousand nineteen. Recent operations, including vessel seizures, havefurther curtailed exports primarily to China and India.
If the United States consolidates control swiftly, it may deter challengesto its strategic priorities elsewhere, particularly in the Middle East. Areliable Venezuelan supply line would lower the economic threshold forconfronting Iran over its nuclear program or regional activities, makingescalation more feasible without severe domestic energy price spikes.
Conversely, prolonged resistance or entanglement in Venezuela could strainUnited States resources, diverting attention from other theatres. Thisscenario might embolden adversaries, complicate alliances with Israel,which relies on American leverage in the region, and expose vulnerabilitiesin overextension. Historical precedents, such as interventions in LatinAmerica, highlight risks of backlash and sustained insurgency.
The operation has drawn international condemnation, with leaders fromBrazil, Mexico, and Cuba denouncing it as a violation of sovereignty. TheEuropean Union called for restraint while noting legitimacy concerns overMaduro’s government. Regional bodies expressed alarm over precedents forinterference, recalling past United States actions under the MonroeDoctrine.
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Energy markets reacted muted initially, with prices dipping amid oversupplyconcerns, but analysts warn of volatility if infrastructure damagepersists. Venezuela’s output, though diminished, contributes to OPECbalances, and any prolonged shutdown could tighten heavy crude availabilityfor refiners worldwide.
Broader implications extend to the petrodollar’s resilience. Nations likeIran and Venezuela have explored non-dollar trades, including euros andyuan, challenging the system’s exclusivity. Reinforced control over majorreserves could delay de-dollarization trends pushed by BRICS economiesseeking diversified settlements.
What unfolds in Caracas will resonate far beyond Latin America, influencingenergy security, currency dominance, and confrontation trajectoriesinvolving Iran. The outcome may redefine limits of American powerprojection in an increasingly multipolar world order.
Source:https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/1/3/world-reacts-to-reported-us-bombing-of-venezuela
Tags: Venezuela, United States, Iran, OPEC, Petrodollar, Nicolás Maduro,Donald Trump, Oil Reserves.
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