Caracas. The current US military threat against Venezuela is no flash in the pan. The South American country has been resisting aggression from the planet's leading economic and military power for 25 years. Commander Hugo Chávez won the presidential elections in December 1998 at the head of a mass movement unprecedented in the nation's history, made up of crowds from the poorest neighborhoods roused by the conviction of a popular leader determined to turn the tide of social inequality. Washington immediately viewed with caution the"turn" made by a nation that for a century had been a strategic ally, with immense oil reserves that guaranteed the US government constant, cheap crude oil.
2001: The sabotage begins
The first major test of strength came with the employers' strike on December 10, 2001, called by Fedecámaras and the union leadership of the Venezuelan Workers' Confederation (CTV) in response to the 49 laws enacted by Chávez, including agrarian, tax, and oil reforms. An analysis by Workers to Workers links the CTV's growing activity to funding from the National Endowment for Democracy (NED, a U.S. foundation).
April 2002: Made in the USA blow
The coup d'état of April 11, 2002, which removed Chávez from power for 47 hours, constituted the first major demonstration of U.S. intervention in Venezuela.
Washington supervised and monitored the uprising's actions. High-ranking U.S. officials maintained ties with businessmen and military personnel involved in the plot. The Navy assisted with intelligence and communications. The ambassador in Caracas, Charles Shapiro, communicated by radio with the conspirators on the day of the uprising.
December 2002: First attempt at suffocation
The opposition and the George W. Bush administration bet on oil sabotage as a way to oust Chávez. They organized a"civic strike" that resulted in an industrial lockout. They aimed to strangle the state's main source of revenue: they closed refineries, halted exports, and shut down the computer system of Petróleos de Venezuela Sociedad Anónima (PDVSA), controlled by the SAIC company in Virginia.
2004: Activation of Terrorism
In early 2004, there were violent protests involving groups of young people financed by Washington, who carried out vandalism and used barricade techniques designed by Cuban-Venezuelan Robert Alonso. They attempted to paralyze the country by creating urban pockets of violence, a strategy later repeated and known as guarimbas.
That year, it was discovered that more than 150 Colombian paramilitaries were training at the Daktari farm, owned by Alonso, to seize power and attack Chavista leaders, with logistical support from the United States.
2005: Out with the DEA
In 2005, Chávez suspended cooperation with the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), accusing it of espionage:"The U.S. agency was using the fight against drug trafficking as a cover to even support drug trafficking and conduct intelligence against the government," he said.
2007: reissue of the guarimbas
In 2007, US agencies revived the strategy with student organizations funded and trained in the format known as Otpor in Serbia by veterans of the"color revolutions." Street blockades, burning of street furniture, and attacks on institutions increased.
2011: first sanctions
The pioneer of economic aggression was Barack Obama. In 2011, the State Department sanctioned PDVSA for oil transactions with Iran, opening a cycle that would deteriorate life in the country.
2013: Violence Returns
After Chávez's death in 2013, Nicolás Maduro won the elections, but the right wing ignored the results and unleashed a new chapter of guarimbas that left two dozen dead.
Maduro expelled three diplomats from the U.S. embassy for interference and conspiracy.
2014: Political Terror and the Origin of the Blockade
That year, opposition leaders promoted"The Exit," riots that left at least 43 dead and major infrastructure vandalized. That December, the United States Congress passed the Venezuelan Human Rights and Civil Society Defense Act, which began a decade of sanctions and a severe economic crisis.
2015: Obama's decree
In March 2015, Obama signed Executive Order 13,692, which declared a"national emergency" because Venezuela posed "an unusual and extraordinary threat." This decree broadened the legal framework for subsequent sanctions.
2017: From Political to Economic Terrorism
Under Trump, Washington toughened its strategy: guarimbas and more economic pressure. Street terrorism left more than 100 dead and nearly a thousand injured. Trump signed Executive Order 13,808 prohibiting new debt issuance by the state and PDVSA, strangling credit and accelerating the crisis.
2018: Attack on Maduro and more sanctions
On August 4, 2018, during a military ceremony in Caracas, two drones exploded near the presidential box, injuring seven guards. Maduro escaped unharmed. The involvement of opposition figures supported by Colombia and US agencies was confirmed. That year, the United States and the European Union imposed additional sanctions on oil, gold, mining, and banking. A study by the Center for Economic and Policy Research estimated that the 2017-2018 measures alone could have been associated with more than 40,000 deaths due to their impact on income, medical supplies, and services.
2019-2020: Aggression on the Rise
Washington ignored Maduro's victory in 2018 and in January 2019 recognized Juan Guaidó as"interim president." The White House called on the military to depose Maduro. They imposed sanctions against PDVSA, asset freezes, and embargoes Citgo.
On February 23, they attempted to invade with a caravan of supposed humanitarian aid from Colombia, which was repelled by armed forces, militias, and the public. On April 30, there was an attempted military coup with intelligence officials who sought refuge in the United States.
In March 2020, the US Department of Justice charged Maduro and other leaders with narcoterrorism and offered rewards of up to $15 million. In May, the failed maritime raid Gedeón, organized by Jordan Goudreau under orders from Trump and Guaidó, ended with deaths and arrests, including two former Green Berets.
2021-2024: Temporary Flexibility
Between 2021 and 2024, the Biden administration negotiated with Caracas a limited easing of sanctions that allowed Chevron to operate minimally and ship oil to the United States. After Maduro's victory in July 2024, Washington claimed fraud and withdrew the sanctions relief, tightening the economic stranglehold once again.
2025: The (un)declared war against Venezuela
Since Trump returned to the White House on January 20, 2025, the aggression against Venezuela has moved into a frontal assault phase. He revoked Chevron's license, deported thousands of Venezuelans, declared the Aragua Train and the Los Soles cartel"Maduro-controlled" terrorist organizations, increased the bounty on the Venezuelan leader to $50 million, authorized the use of military force against drug gangs, and deployed an attack fleet in the Caribbean that includes destroyers, fighter jets, and even a nuclear submarine.
On September 7, Trump responded to a question about whether an attack on"the cartels" on Venezuelan territory could be expected with the remark: "Well, they'll find out."
A quarter of a century later, Washington's constant aggression against the Bolivarian Revolution has mutated, but not to diminish, quite the opposite. Venezuela's response has been firm: elections, strengthening of popular power, reinforcement of social policy, international alliances, and a dignity born of Latin American historical memory.
