Venezuela after Maduro and Trump unleashed
January 09, 2026
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Ian Explains
On Ian Explains, host Ian Bremmer makes complex issues about global politics understandable. Ian Explains is a weekly segment on GZERO WORLD with Ian Bremmer, GZERO's weekly program about global news and current affairs.
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Ian Bremmer explains why the US capture of Nicolás Maduro marks a turning point for American power, and what the return of “the law of the jungle” means for global stability.
Ian breaks down the stunning US operation that captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and what it signals about America’s role in the world. The raid was swift, precise, and uniquely American in its scope, removing a widely reviled dictator without deploying ground troops or suffering US casualties.
For President Trump, it was a clear geopolitical win, proof that raw power can still deliver fast results. But Bremmer argues the real story begins after the mission ends. With Maduro gone, the United States now faces unanswered questions about how a country of 30 million people is supposed to function under US pressure, whether Venezuela’s military will accept an interim government, and how quickly instability could spiral into something far worse.
The risks, he warns, echo past interventions where military success outpaced political planning. Zooming out, Bremmer frames the operation as part of a broader shift in US foreign policy. Trump’s message is simple: America has the biggest stick, and it intends to use it. That message is being heard not just in Caracas, but across Latin America and even in Europe. The danger, Bremmer explains, is that once rules are abandoned, power becomes unpredictable. What’s used against adversaries today can be turned inward tomorrow, accelerating the breakdown of a global order the US itself helped build.
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