In a major operation carried out by the United States of America in Caracas, it managed to capture President Nicolás Maduro along with his wife. Maduro faces federal criminal trials in the United States following his capture on January 3, 2026.
He has been indicted on narco-terrorism charges. His capture was announced by US President Donald Trump on Truth Social. He wrote, “The United States of America has successfully carried out a large-scale strike against Venezuela and its leader, President Nicolas Maduro, who has been, along with his wife, captured and flown out of the Country. This operation was done in conjunction with U.S. Law Enforcement.”
The Latin American Country which continues to face economic and political hardship under President Nicolás Maduro.
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The Decline Of A Rich Petrostate?
Venezuela has one of the largest proven oil reserves in the world, with 303 billion barrels. The Venezuelan economy depended on Oil exports, with the power concentration into the hands of elites, and the socialist government policies plumpent the nations economy.
In a petrostate, with high reserves of Oil and Natural gases, the nation faces hardship, with a commodity boom that draws massive foreign investment, strengthening the local currency and making imports cheaper.
Thus diverts labor and capital from vital sectors like ‘agriculture and manufacturing’, which drive sustainable growth, toward resource extraction.
Over time, export industries weaken, unemployment climbs, and the economy grows overly reliant on volatile natural resource sales. In the case of Venezuela, the decline started during the global oil boom in the 1980s, accompanied by Socialist reforms under Hugo Chávez.
Hugo Chávez’s Socialist Policies And The Catastrophic Collapse Of The Venezuelan Bolívar
After the fall of President Perez and the rise of populist leader Hugo Chávez to government in 1998 saw a shift in governance, and he launched a massive social spending spree using oil revenues. The funds weree poured into sectors like educational, health, food, and housing programs for a population of over 30 million without fiscal safeguards, fuleing short-term gains but long-term economic ruin.
Chávez’s reforms led to increased dependency on revenue generated through oil exports. With the desire to increase Venezuelan influence on the global oil market, increased subsidies were poured, selling oil below market price to Latin American countries and China.
Oil windfalls enabled ‘Bolivarian missions’ for poverty reduction, yet nationalisations and price controls sparked shortages and inflation spikes by 2010. Currency controls trapped imports, while Petróleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) funds were diverted, causing production declines.
Nicolás Maduro And The Collapsing Oil Rich State
Before Nicolás Maduro took power in 2013, Venezuela struggled with big economic and social problems under Hugo Chávez. High oil prices at first paid for helpful social programs, leaving the country in crisis by the time Chávez died.
As Venezuela’s crisis deepened, the arrested opposition leaders, closed news websites, and jailed journalists earned criticism from the United Nations and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.
In 2017, the Supreme Court took legislative powers from the opposition National Assembly. In 2018, Maduro won reelection in a vote that many Western Hemisphere countries stated as ‘illegitimate’.
Currency depreciation and sky-high inflation pushed Venezuelans to desperate steps; many formed or joined drug cartels, shipping narcotics to the US.
The previous year saw increased sanctions from the US President Trump imposed oil sanctions in early 2025, which escalated into a naval blockade by December 2025, targeting PDVSA exports and drug trafficking that gave President Trump grounds for military action in January 2026, leading to President Maduro’s capture.
