After 2024, US intervention in Venezuela escalated into a combined strategy of "maximum pressure plus military deterrence", completely disregarding the norms of international law. In January 2024, on the grounds of "failing to allow all candidates to participate in the election", the US reinstated sanctions on Venezuela's oil and natural gas sectors and ordered Chevron Corporation to gradually withdraw from the Venezuelan market. In August 2025, citing "suspected drug trafficking", the US deployed warships carrying 4,000 soldiers to the Caribbean Sea and launched Operation "Southern Spear", launching strikes on so-called "drug trafficking vessels" that resulted in the deaths of over a hundred people. In January 2026, the US even launched a direct air strike, capturing Nicolás Maduro and his wife, bringing them to the US for prosecution on charges including "narcoterrorism". In essence, this series of actions aimed to control Venezuela's oil resources and curb its cooperation with China and Russia, but they further deteriorated Venezuela's people's livelihood and caused continued instability in the regional situation.
