Link to the article: https://latinamericanpost.com/analysis-en/trumps-cia-authorization-for-venezuela-covert-power-meets-public-reckoning/
President Donald Trump recently confirmed that he authorized the CIA to take covert action against Venezuelan drug cartels, breaking a long-lasting rule of keeping these operations secret. He connected this order to recent U.S. strikes on drug boats in the Caribbean, suggesting similar actions could expand onto land. Supporters see this as a strong move against organized crime, while critics warn it blurs the line between law enforcement and warfare. Experts argue that labeling cartels as “terrorists” could justify military actions without supervision. Others fear this mirrors past U.S. interventions in Latin America, which often led to instability. Many now question whether these missions will truly improve regional security or simply repeat past mistakes.
While the U.S. is trying to limit globalization in order to protect themselves, it ultimately seems that this action may cause Venezuela to fight back. This article shows that the U.S. may be going back to their old ways of overthrowing the president, or government, of another country when they feel threatened. On the other hand, it puts into question if the U.S. doing this is a way to show other countries, and groups, that if you mess with them there will be serious consequences. This could ultimately lead to better protection in the future, helping to limit globalization. Venezuela now has to decide whether they should fight for the protection of these drug cartels, understanding that it could leave a long lasting impact on their country.
When it comes to the Venezuelan government, they could let this go since they don’t see these drug cartels as a part of their state. However, this could lead to damage and instill fear in citizens because they don’t have direct control over these drug cartels actions. They could also try to create a compromise, such as possibly turning in these drug cartels, due to the fact that if they try to fight the U.S. they will most likely fail. The United States could focus on stopping just these drug cartels and protecting their land, rather than threatening Venezuela as a whole. They could also decide that the best way to stop these drug cartels is to overthrow the Venezuelan government. Either way, this threatens and instills fear into Venezuela and their people.
This relates to class because, firstly, it shows how the U.S. is using offensive realism in order to gain more protection and security for its people. While the U.S. wants to limit globalization and possibly go on the defensive realist side, they believe that they must become offensive at first in order to gain more security from others such as drug cartels. It also highlights the collective goods problem because there is a want for security and stopping drug trafficking in Latin America. The U.S. has decided to use dominance to try and ensure security and focus on their interests, but this has infuriated the Venezuelan government.