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US-Venezuela conflict

US-Venezuela conflict
The United States attacked Venezuela on January 3, 2026, abducted its leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife and placed them in detention in New York, in what was the most direct US military action in Latin America in nearly four decades.
US President Donald Trump has so far appeared happy to allow Delcy Rodriguez and much of her government to remain in power. Photo: AFP
Venezuela

US says Venezuela’s interim president to visit as relations shift post-Maduro

Delcy Rodriguez says she’s approaching any US talks ‘without fear’ after a senior US official said she would visit Washington soon.

United States

Trump lays out Greenland-Arctic deal framework, pauses February tariffs

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World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos

Trump tells Davos US must have Greenland but won’t use force – as it happened

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Americas and the Caribbean

US forces seize seventh sanctioned oil tanker linked to Venezuela

MV Sagitta is the latest ship linked to Venezuela that the US has captured since early December.

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The US military’s Southern Command said it captured the MV Sagitta ‘without incident’. Photo: US Southern Command via X
Cuba

China sends emergency food aid to Cuba as US sanctions worsen shortages

First batch of rice arrives in Cuba under new Chinese programme while the island reels from abrupt halt in Venezuelan oil shipments.

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United States

Opinion | Why isn’t Trump learning from past foreign policy mistakes?

From Venezuela and Iran to Greenland and Canada, US interventions and threats risk spillovers and retaliation – as history shows.

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Donald Trump

Diversify or die: Asian firms face trade uncertainty amid Trump’s Mexico threats

The president’s call for strikes against drug cartels in Mexico and Colombia will add to the cost of trading with the US, analysts say.

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Mexico’s Manzanillo seaport, a critical gateway for trade between Asia and the Americas, is seen in May last year after its expansion. Photo: Reuters
Venezuela

Opinion | Trump’s Venezuela raid a rude awakening for Russia and China

The US abduction of Venezuela’s president showed Russia could do little to protect its ally while China’s economic ties were put at risk.

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Venezuela

Opinion | Why the US really wants Venezuela’s oil

To win the geopolitical contest, a country needs ample resources, a self-sustaining production system – and the backing of a wider economic bloc.

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United States

Before Maduro’s capture in Venezuela, US spoke with hardline interior minister

Some politicians in Washington have questioned why the US did not grab Diosdado Cabello during its operation to seize Maduro.

Venezuela’s Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello attends a ceremony last week honouring military and security personnel who died during a US raid to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores in Caracas. Photo: Reuters
Venezuela

How US actions in Venezuela and beyond could spell opportunity for China

Beijing is trying to present itself as a more responsible power, but analysts say concrete actions will be needed to win over its neighbours.

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US actions are fuelling fears that the Donald Trump administration is dismantling the rules-based global order. Photo: Getty Images via AFP
United States

US’ FAA warns airlines to ‘potential risks’ in Mexican, South American airspace

The warnings come a month after a JetBlue passenger jet almost collided with a US Air Force tanker plane near Venezuela ‌.

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China-Latin America relations

Counting China’s ‘swing nation’ wins and losses in new era of power rivalry

As US-China race for hi-tech resources heats up across Global South, countries caught in the middle are under pressure to strike a balance.

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Donald Trump

Machado says Venezuela will be free with support of Trump

The opposition leader earlier presented her Nobel Peace Prize medal to Trump in a bid to win over the US president.

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Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado speaks at the Heritage Foundation in Washington on Friday. Photo: AFP
US-China relations

Tesla’s defeat, Harvard’s success, Beijing’s shock: 7 US-China relations reads

From China’s EV power to Hegseth’s new threat, here are highlights from the SCMP’s overseas correspondents in the first half of January 2026.

Practitioners perform martial art next to a BYD Sealion 7 electric vehicle at Singapore Motorshow on January 9. Photo: AFP
China-Latin America relations

Trump pick for South America command sidesteps China questions at Senate hearing

Lieutenant General Francis Donovan’s answers frustrated even Republicans in favour of a military-first plan to counter Chinese influence.

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Open Questions series

Open Questions | China wins if Venezuela ensnares Trump, Mearsheimer says

Maduro’s ‘kidnap’ and naked grab for Venezuela’s oil may leave US bogged down and less able to keep eye on China, political scientist John Mearsheimer says.

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Venezuela

Venezuela’s Machado says she ‘presented’ her Nobel Peace Prize to Trump

US president praises Machado for her ‘wonderful’ gesture as he warms to Venezuela’s new leaders.

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Maria Corina Machado gave her Nobel Peace Prize medal to US President Donald Trump during their White House meeting. Photo: The White House via Reuters
Cybersecurity

China-linked hackers ‘used Venezuela-themed phishing to target US agencies’

Swiss firm says Mustang Panda leveraged US-Venezuela tensions as geopolitical lures in a malware campaign against government-related targets.

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Donald Trump

Washington completes first sale of Venezuelan oil ‘in US$500 million deal’

The White House official, who did not identify the buyer, said additional sales could take place in the coming days or weeks.

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European Union

Opinion | An internally split Europe can never fully engage China and Asia

The Brussels effect is real but so is Europe’s strategic subordination to the US. For China, and Asia, this means proceeding with pragmatism.

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Illustration: Craig Stephens
United States

Macroscope | Investors are giving Trump a free pass

Markets, especially bond markets, are meant to be a disciplining force. Their inaction will only embolden Trump to act more recklessly.

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A video of US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell plays on a screen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on January 12. Powell has rejected the Trump administration’s claims of wrongdoing against him, calling them a pretext for punishing him for not cutting interest rates as fast as US President Donald Trump desired. Photo: AP
Donald Trump

Trump prevails in US Senate showdown over Venezuela war powers

A 51–50 vote kills war powers resolution after Trump pressure flips two key Republican defectors.

Donald Trump

Trump praises Venezuela’s ‘terrific’ interim president after call

After sidelining Venezuela’s opposition, the US president touts ‘tremendous progress’ on oil and security with Maduro’s former deputy.

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Greater Bay Area

Letters | The strategic calculations behind Trump’s Venezuela raid

Readers discuss the objectives of the US raid on Venezuela, why the episode pleases China and Russia, and how to help Shenzhen shine as a global city.

US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with oil executives in the East Room of the White House in Washington on January 9. Trump aims to convince them to support his plans for Venezuela. Photo: AFP
US-China relations

Opinion | Trump’s audacious imperialism will only propel China’s rise

Far from setting China back, Trump’s foreign policy is bolstering the case for viewing Beijing as the driver of a more equitable world.

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Illustration: Craig Stephens
China-Latin America relations

‘Expansion to defence’: China firms strategise in Latin America after Venezuela

After the abduction of former Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro, many Chinese entrepreneurs in the region say they are staying put – for now.

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Venezuela

Trump sets meeting with Machado as Venezuela frees more prisoners

White House plans Thursday talks with the Nobel winner while continuing to engage Venezuela’s leaders on oil access and prisoner releases.

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