委内瑞拉局势未按特朗普计划发展

Ever since the war in Iran kicked off, it's been abundantly clear that US President Donald Trump's best case scenario has always been to replicate his purported success in Venezuela. On March the 1st, for instance, barely a couple of days after the first strikes, Trump told the New York Times, quote, "What we did in Venezuela, I think, is the perfect the perfect scenario." After Iranian state media confirmed that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Ham had been killed in the opening strikes, Trump told Axios, quote, I have to be involved in the next appointment like with Deli in Venezuela.

As recently as last Thursday, barely a couple of days before the peace deal was announced, Trump was posting on Truth Social that we will be taking Car Island and other oil infrastructure points and assume total control of their oil and gas markets, much like we have with Venezuela. Obviously, Trump ultimately backtracked on these threats and effectively capitulated in Iran. But on top of that, while Trump's Venezuela operation was initially hailed as a success by both the administration and many Venezuelans, its sheen has since worn off and polls suggest public opinion has started to turn.

So, in this video, we thought we take a look at what's happening in Venezuela and why Venezuelans are apparently souring on Trump. Contrary to Trump's original talk of regime change, the war in Iran has apparently cemented the Iranian regime's grip on power. In the latest issue of our magazine, we explain how this happened and why it's too early to be pessimistic about the future of Iran. That's just one of 80 pages in the magazine, because there's more in too long than you'd expect.

Purchase your copy by clicking the link in the description. So, let's start by explaining why the US intervention in Venezuela was originally seen as a success, at least by the Trump administration. The operation itself went pretty smoothly. Maduro was extracted without any US casualties, and Trump spent much of the subsequent weeks waxing lyrical about America's military prowess, much as he did after the strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities. overwhelming American military power.

Air, land, and sea was used to launch a spectacular assault. And it was a an assault like people have not seen since World War II.

The operation was probably illegal under international law, which is why the international reaction was somewhat mixed, but it was undeniably popular with ordinary Venezuelans who aren't generally too keen on Maduro. A poll conducted via mobile in mid January for instance found that more than 50% of respondents agreed with the operation against Maduro while just 13% opposed it. Similarly, the vast majority of respondents said they expected both the political situation and their own economic situation to get better and a sizable plurality said they supported US governance in the country.

Although opinions were more mixed when it came to Venezuela's oil industry. This would be consistent with anot