A-Infos (en) France, UCL Press Release - Venezuela: Oil in the Crosshairs of Imperialism (ca, de, fr, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

On January 3, Washington attacked Venezuela, without even the approval 
of its Congress, striking military bases as well as civilian 
infrastructure to capture and "exfiltrate" President Maduro. US 
imperialism is back on the international stage and threatens the 
security of the populations whose resources it covets. ---- Since 
Trump's second election, pre-existing Sino-American rivalries have 
become the main axis of US geopolitics. Added to this is, of course, the 
competition for access to resources in the context of a major 
environmental crisis. Trump is therefore increasingly trying to 
strengthen his political, military, and economic domination over what he 
considers his "private hunting ground." The concept of "narcoterrorism," 
a fusion of the well-known rhetoric of the "war on drugs" and the "war 
on terror," is supposed to justify this operation. In a context of 
escalating inter-imperialist conflicts, the Trump administration is no 
longer even trying to deceive supranational bodies: it is openly 
flouting international law and clearly asserting its imperialist 
intentions, with the support of Macron and the neutrality of the 
European Union.

For Trump is not talking about a supposed restoration of democracy, but 
rather about oil. In addition to significant mineral and gas resources, 
Venezuela possesses the world's largest oil reserves: one-fifth of 
global reserves. But since 2019, the Venezuelan people have been 
severely impacted by a US economic embargo on oil, weakening their 
economy and exacerbating poverty among the working class. This embargo 
has forced Venezuela to sell its oil indirectly at low prices, notably 
to China, via a "ghost fleet." Trump's actions will have consequences 
for this market, whether for China or Russia, whose oil exports finance 
the war in Ukraine, or for Cuba, where the Castro regime is partly 
dependent on Venezuelan oil.

While the Maduro regime was authoritarian and no longer socialist-as 
evidenced by the repression of labor and revolutionary activists-it is 
also essential to remember that the US embargo was the catalyst for this 
shift. We must refuse to allow criticism of this regime to be used as a 
cover for imperialist interference. Venezuela was beginning to move away 
from the petrodollar system that, for nearly 50 years, provided the 
United States with a significant financial windfall and ensured its 
hegemony. It is also this threat to the US economy that Trump seems to 
want to eliminate through violence and military action.

It is difficult to predict how the situation will evolve in the coming 
weeks. The Venezuelan government appears to be aligned with Trump, but 
militias and army units whose commanders still seem loyal to Maduro 
retain significant influence in the country. Oil infrastructure is in 
ruins due to US sanctions and corruption, making US oil companies 
hesitant to exploit Venezuela. It is therefore difficult to know whether 
Trump's petrocolonial ambitions will succeed. But Trump has revealed his 
true intentions: to assert US control over the American continent. One 
thing is certain: the masses will pay the price for these imperialist 
ambitions, whether through economic crises or new military 
interventions, such as those Trump is threatening in Greenland, Mexico, 
and Colombia.

The Libertarian Communist Union strongly condemns this attack and all US 
interference in Venezuela, as well as anywhere else in the world, and 
calls for participation in all rallies in support of the Venezuelan 
people that will take place in the coming weeks.

Down with petrocolonialism, down with imperialism! US troops out of 
Venezuela!

Libertarian Communist Union, January 13, 2026.

https://www.unioncommunistelibertaire.org/?Venezuela-le-petrole-dans-le-viseur-de-l-imperialisme
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